GDR 25th Anniversary

Continued from page4 weekend creche and-four kinder- gartens. ; ;

Despite these and a number of other provisions (116 noisy jobs to be eliminated in 1975, a preg- nant women -not permitted on noisy jobs, etc.) Mrs. Kieber, in charge of women’s questions, re- _ Mains very active in the plant. (Women in the GDR account for 47.7% of the work force.)

Use Oppertunities

“We know we can solve our problems,” she said, “but it re- quires constant vigilence to see that rulings handed down by the state are implemented, to see that state law is applied.

‘It is largely a question,” she

explained “‘of women taking ad- -

vantage of the equality guaran- teed them, and making use of the opportunities to take respon- sible positions’. . .” . “ She spoke of the textile en- gineering diploma that is avail- able—three years at an engineer- ing school, with special -facilities ‘for ‘women. Or, there is the work-school of the enterprise where women can increasé their ‘knowledge and skills and gain a certificate by spending two days a-week at study (at full pay) with time off twice a year for consultation and examination preparation. _ 25 Women retire at 60, men at 65, but the women’s représenta- tive was apologetic. “We cannot reduce the pensionable age at present because of the labor Shortage, and the large propor-

tion who are already of pension-' able age.” In the GDR almost’

20% of the population is on old- “age pension. There are 75 non- employable persons for every 100 working inhabitants, and

33.8 of the 75 are old-age pen-

sioners. . Pensions are based on years of work, average earnings of the

last 20-25 years, with considera- - term tion for women who have. also.

kept a hausehold and Trajsed children — in fact it is a meas- ‘ure of what one has put into .the community. State honors al- so count. Recipients of the Trade Union Medal, for example, re- ceive an additional- amount of - pension per month. More than Fringes

There is little value in. quoting

amounts of pay or pensions in

marks, without a study of the

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 1974—PAGE 10

se

A chlidren’s hotel at the Cottbus Textile plant. provides accom-

modation for those occasions when both parents have to be absent — on shift work, study courses or for other reasons. Parents pay a token sum for: full, professional child ‘care, room and meals. The plant will enlarge this facility in 1975.

many benefits received, includ- ing low rents, free ‘or inexpen- sive vacations, free education and: universal medical care. The truth is that the fringe benefits of socialism attach to all aspects of life. ~ :

Yet, there is one which can-:

not go unsung. Young married couples. up to 26 years of age, whose joint monthly income ‘is not higher than 1,400 marks re- ceive an interest-free credit of up to 5,000° marks, for the pur- pose’ of furnishing their house- hold. What a delight for the con-

‘templation of “Canadian youth

who are the victims of sky- scraping prices. .

’ One other clue to living stand- ards is seen ‘in the division of average expenditures of a family of three over one year:

related products t

footwear 0% textiles 10.4% other industrial oe - commodities ............... 17.4% services and repairs... 11.8% including: a transport 20 1.3% rents” x» 2.8%

gas and electricity (heating of all types) 1.3% Two Main Problems _ ,

: Don’t GDR workers’ have any problems, then?

Yes, the Cottbus workers said that for example:

“There is still a contradiction between what we would like to do and what is possible at the given. moment. Through long- planning we can see up to

1980—and it shows a unity of.

development between production and living standards. “Housing is our biggest prob- lem; quite a number of people are still searching for proper homes.” But they welcome what Erich Honecker, first secretary of the Socialist Unity Party, said earlier this year: — “We are pressing ahead with our housing construction _pro-

gram under which the housing

problem in our country is to be

solved by 1990. During the cur- rent Five-Year Plan period end- ing in 1975 we are making avail- able to the population, especial- ly to working-class families, well over 500,000 new or modernized apartments.”

_.What does he mean, “espe+ cially to working-class fami- lies”?) No such proposition was ever heard in Canada.

But in the GDR, no less than the Socialist Unity Party ‘Con- gress (April 1972) declared: “The local authorities and enterprises are bound to ensure, in coopera- tions with the housing commis- sions of. the enterprise trade union committees, housing is to be made available with priority to factory and of- fice. workers’ and families of three or more children. At least 60% of new housing is to be of-

fered to production workers . . .. , “A check on the distribution

of housing space in the enter-

prise and territory is to be in-.

cluded in the activity of the or- gans of the Workers’ and Farm- ers’ Inspectorate and the trade union worker-controllers.”

Can workers afford to accept the offered housing? What are typical rents? Here is an example

from Guben, north ‘of Cottbus,

near the Polish border. (Keep in mind the average wage in the GDR is 815 marks.) A two-room apartment (piped heating, bath- room, built-in kitchen and hot water) is 66 marks a month. Three rooms —. 77 marks, four rooms — 94 marks. This is for families earning less than 2,000 marks monthly. Those earning’ more pay the higher scale’ that was standard for the same apart- ments before 1972 — 77, 94 and 130 marks for the accomodation mentioned above, Labor Shortage “The second biggest problem

is the labor shortage,” the Cott/

bus. workers told the Tribune. “The working week is 42

hours, and although overtime is

not encouraged as common prac- tice, with trade union agree- ment, overtime is worked in some jobs.”

Deputy Director Raum ob- served that out of the 8th Con- gress of-’the Socialist Unity Party came decisions: guarantee- ing stable prices, an increase in the minimum wage and an in- crease in paid holidays, to men- tion a few of the advances. “Every increase in pay is a real increase,” he stressed, “because Prices are stable — and some prices have been reduced. This plant’s products were reduced in price by 30%! ;

“We are fulfilling the Party demands,” he said. “We are pre- paring for the 9th Congress.” And the Congress of the leading party in the socialist GDR is looked to for a plan to take the

next step on the socialist road.

that new:

’ cialist country.

"Workers must have séJ| in every decision madé

‘Among vast’ changes. aris-

ing from the founding and 25- year progress of the German Democratic Republic are im-

mensely increased opportuni-'

ties for-women in all spheres of life.

Major credit for this goes. to the Socialist Unity Party, whose branches are an integ- ral part of life for the Cottbus

’ Textile workers as it is in other enterprises. / Pointing out that the Party is the tested fighter for the all-round interests of work- ing people, Mrs. Schmidt, Party secretary at the plant, said a few words of explana- tion for Canadian workers

about what a Party branch does, and how her life ‘and .

those of many other women

were given new impetus with. the help of Party encourage-

ment. ‘ Unlike the tasks of a work- ers’ party in capitalist con- ditions, where the means of production is privately own- ed, and workers and manage- ment are class enemies what- ever their subjective feeling,

“it is the task of the (Social- |

‘ist Unity) Party,” Mrs. ~Schmidt ‘explained, “to dis- cover new reserves in the

form of ideas, methods, etc.,” .

to improve the performance. of the socialist economy.

“The more we can win- . workers to. participate and

the more we listen to their ideas, the more they can par- ticipate ‘as owners of.our in- dustries,” she said.

It was the Party’s job, she said, to ensure worker parti- cipation in every discussion, in every decision. “With young workers it is necessary to show them: how to use re- ‘sources carefully; how to pro-

tect machinery ... We (Party

members) work intensively

with the Free German Youth

(FDJ) and the trade union. “We are now discussing . production targets. Manage- ' Ment cannot just hand out these targets; there is full

_ discussion among the work

teams. These discussions

form the basis for the target .

for 1975.” _ _Mrs. Schmidt revealed some of her own experiences which

fired her down-to-earth en-:

thusiasm for working to build and make prosperous her so- “I grew up in a working- class family,” she related. “My ‘father had been unem- ployed for many years, and he was actively engaged in the Communist Party. I my- self could not learn a trade on account of the conditions we had at home; my father

‘with reaching what We

couldn’t afford to send me iit) to apprenticeship.” pe. Observing that she “stat ed as a domestic servant aft | I left school at ‘the age 14,” the Party secretary °°". that she was in the positiol “until the end of the last wa! In the meantime she had mat | ried and had two childret “After the German Dem’ cratic Republic was foundel I went to night school for for’ first time in my He, courses in typing and. | to man among others. (I ws then started in “adminis tion work at sa 1g grade,” joined : organization in’ which px later became a full-time * tionary. She ‘and her husband ee | the 30-odd miles to : .. » “My husband a! high school study course 1 | three years in tis just] entered the textile “gith . .. Starting as a mill

“I was given every. ¢

44

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GDR, been awarded a P44 |/ for her contribution 1 ~~ socialist economy. “We - have fulfilled iy state plan,” she told the ou une, “and our own Pit ied discussions are now

=f

we produce more ef | skirts as a result of “a performance.” A Explaining further nou of the workers

in ie iere, They help be crecetere, They Oe aa them to convey to others, to bring they think can be im “We see it as mares cet duty to discuss wa Le Pe i to. have an open the gilt

Part of the automated circular knitting dep jeted Cottbus textile plant. Begun in 1968, it was comp’ :

four months.

ment i? artmen in