Alexei Stakhanov

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Lore & Background

Alexei Stakhanov was born in Lugovaya (now in Izmalkovsky District), a village in the Livensky Uezd of the Orel Governorate of the Russian Empire in 1906. In his early 20s, he began working in a mine called "Tsentralnaia-Irmino" (literally Central Irmino) in the village of Irminskiy rudnik (present day Irmino). In 1933, Stakhanov became a jackhammer operator. In 1935, he took a local course in mining. On 31 August 1935, it was reported that he had mined a record 102 tonnes of coal in 5 hours and 45 minutes (14 times his quota). On 19 September, Stakhanov was reported to have set a new record by mining 227 tonnes of coal in a single shift. His example was held up in newspapers and posters as a model for others to follow, and he appeared on the cover of Time magazine in the United States. In 1936–1941, Stakhanov was a student of the Industrial Academy in Moscow. In 1941–1942, he was appointed director of mine No. 31 in Karaganda. Between 1943 and 1957, Stakhanov worked in the Ministry of Coal Industry of the USSR. In 1957–1959, he was deputy director of the Chistiakovantratsit trust, and after that, assistant chief engineer at the mine management office No. 2/43 of the Torezantratsit trust until his retirement in 1974. Stakhanov was a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union of the first convocation. He was awarded two Orders of Lenin, Order of the Red Banner of Labour, and numerous medals. At some point Stakhanov developed problems with alcohol and came to lose his Order of Lenin and party card during a drunken brawl. He died in 1977 at the age of 71.

Reader's Guide

Alexei Stakhanov's significance lies in his role as the figurehead of the Stakhanovite movement, a campaign intended to increase worker productivity and to demonstrate the superiority of the socialist economic system. His records set an example throughout the country and gave birth to the Stakhanovite movement, where workers who exceeded production targets could become "Stakhanovites." However, the validity of his record has been called into question. In 1985, The New York Times printed a story alleging that though Stakhanov had indeed succeeded in his feat, it was only because the Communist Party had arranged the event as a way of boosting public morale, with many other miners working to help Stakhanov beat the mining record. The Times quoted the chief of the Tsentralnaia-Irmino mine branch of the Party, Konstantin G. Petrov, as saying that "I suppose Stakhanov need not have been the first... It could have been anybody else. In the final analysis, it was not the individual face-worker who determined whether the attempt to break the record would succeed, but the new system of coal extraction." In 1988, the Soviet newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda claimed that the widely cited achievements of Stakhanov were puffery, insisting that Stakhanov had used a number of helpers on support works, while the throughput was tallied for him alone. Still, according to the newspaper, Stakhanov's approach had eventually led to increased productivity by means of better work organization, including specialization and task sequencing. The last Sunday of August was designated "Coal Miner's Day," also apparently in his honor. The town of Kadiivka in eastern Ukraine where he started his work was renamed Stakhanov in his honour in 1978.

Did You Know?

• Stakhanov appeared on the cover of Time magazine in the United States.
• He lost his Order of Lenin and party card during a drunken brawl.
• The last Sunday of August was designated 'Coal Miner's Day', also apparently in his honor.
• The Ukrainian city of Kadiivka was renamed Stakhanov in his honour in 1978.
• In 1988, the Soviet newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda claimed his achievements were puffery, noting he used helpers while the throughput was tallied for him alone.