The Problem of Using Manpower Released Due to Technical Progress

Technical progress is the main lever for the further development of the socialist economy. Moreover, by securing a rise in labor productivity, it leads to the release of manpower. The intensity and forms of this process vary with branches and enterprises. However, the fact of its existence cannot be denied. It is confirmed, in particular, by the absolute reduction of the number of persons employed in a number of branches of the national economy. For instance, in the 1958-1962 period, the number of workers and employees decreased by 94,400 in the coal industry, by 112,700 in timber cutting, and by 46,400 in the peat industry. There has been a decrease in the number of workers and employees in the cotton-cleaning, hemp-jute, and linen industries, in some branches of the food industry, etc. However, a direct connection cannot always be revealed between the reduction of employment in various branches of the national economy and technical progress. This process can also be due to the technical improvement of production in interconnected sectors of the national economy, or to a change in the pattern of output of various products. For example, the absolute reduction of the number employed in the coal and peat industries cannot be accounted for by technical progress in these branches alone. This is conditioned in considerable measure by a progressive change in the structure of the fuel balance, in which the share of oil and gas has increased. The chemicalization of the national economy exerts a similar influence on employment in some old, labor-consuming branches of production. This applies, in particular, to the cotton, hemp-jute, and linen industries.