Workers from capitalism to capitalism: the case of the Novoteks textile factory

V magistrski nalogi sem raziskovala položaj delavskega razreda znotraj dveh ekonomskih modelov: kapitalizma in jugoslovanskega socializma. Tako kot v vsaki družbi je tudi v kapitalistični Jugoslaviji izkoriščani razred (delavski in kmečki) poskušal premagati socialne razlike in si z organiziranjem v različnih političnih skupinah (stranke, sindikati, društva) priboriti pravice in enakopravnost. Z razpadom Kraljevine Jugoslavije in nastopom socialistične Jugoslavije je na položaj delavskega razreda vplival novi gospodarsko-politični (in s tem družbeni) sistem, imenovan socializem. V socialistični Jugoslaviji so šli delavci in delavke skozi štiri modele socializma (administrativni, samoupravni, tržni in dogovorni), pri katerih se je kombiniralo med načrtom in trgom. S spreminjanjem različnih gospodarskih in političnih modelov so se ustvarjali tudi različni pogoji udejstvovanja in razbremenitve delavskega razreda. S postopnim preusmerjanjem gospodarstva in politike k tržnim zakonitostim je država vse bolj spodkopavala ideje socializma in se vračala v kolesje kapitalizma. Po razpadu socialistične Jugoslavije so se delavci in delavke v Sloveniji soočili s privatizacijo, denacionalizacijo in postopno deregulacijo ekonomije, kar je prineslo stečaje, znižanje in neizplačevanje plač ter kršitve delovnopravne zakonodaje. V magistrski nalogi sem raziskala tudi položaj delavcev in delavk v Tekstilni tovarni Novoteks, ki je bila ena od gospodarsko pomembnejših tovarn na Dolenjskem. Z analizo 124 člankov sem na ravni tovarne podrobneje predstavila dobre in slabe prakse jugoslovanskega socialističnega sistema. Z raziskavo vzročno-posledične povezave med makro- in mikronivojem sem nato lahko predstavila počasno, a temeljito preobrazbo Novoteksa v tržno naravnano proizvodnjo, ki se je končala s stečajem tovarne v devetdesetih.In this thesis, I explored the situation of the working class within two economic models: capitalism and Yugoslav socialism. As is any society, the exploited classes (the workers and the farmers) in capitalist Yugoslavia also attempted to overcome social inequalities and acquire rights and equality by organising different political groups (parties, unions, workers’ societies). With the fall of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and with the emergence of socialist Yugoslavia, the working class situation was largely affected by the new economic and political, therefore social, system called socialism. Male and female workers in socialist Yugoslavia faced four models of socialism: the administrative, the self-managed, the market, and the contractual socialism all of which included a combination of planning and market. While the different economic and political models were changing, several conditions for participation and for easing the burdens of the working class arose. By gradually redirecting the economy and politics towards the laws of the market, the state undermined the socialist ideas and gradually returned to the capitalist machinery. After the collapse of socialist Yugoslavia, workers in Slovenia faced privatisation, denationalisation and gradual deregulation of economy, all of which caused bankruptcies, lowering wages and avoiding paying the wages, as well as violations of the labour legislation. The thesis also explores the situation of workers at the Tekstilna tovarna Novoteks which was economically one of most important factories in the Dolenjska region. By analysing 124 articles, I provided an in-depth presenation of both positive and negative aspects of Yugoslav socialist practices. By examining the causal-effectual link between the micro and macro levels, I was then able to show the steady, yet fundamental transformation of Novoteks into a market-oriented production which ended with bankruptcy in the nineties