LIVING AND SOCIAL CONDITIONS IN THE USSR

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A001300070006-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Sequence Number: 6
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2006/12/05: CIA-RDP80-0081OA001300070006-3
CENTRAL INT'ELLI.G:ENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
SECRET
SECURITY INFORMATION
I UIJECT
DATE OF INFO;
NO. OF PAGES
REQUIREMENT
REFERENCES
THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS REPORT ARE DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
(FOR KEY SEE REVERSE)
?7 May 1953
25X1
1,ivina Conditions at Krasnogorsk
25X1 Zriees and Availability of Consumer Goods
1. There was a marked improvement in the standard of living in the Krasno-
gorak area following the 1947 currency reform. Although prices were
25X1 generally decreased by this move, the Soviet population experienced
some very hard times 4mnediately after the reform, as basic items such
as bread had previously been rationed in limited quantities at lower
25X1. prices. In fact, the .improvement which set in after the price reform
ARMY #x NAVY x JAIR FBI I JAEC
.(N.1, Weabington Distribution Indk.kd By "X"; Fi.Id Distribution By "*"?)
USSR (Moscow Oblast)
This Document contains Information affecting the Na-
tional Defense of the United States, within tbenietyti-
Ing of Title 18, Sections 793 and 794, of the U.S. Code, as
amended. Its transmission or revelation of Its contents
to or receipt by an unauthorized person Isprohlbltrsd
by law. The reproduction of this form is prohibited.
Living and Social Conditions in the USSR DATE DISTR.
Approved For Release 2006/12/05: CIA-RDP80-0081OA001300070006-3
 Approved For Release 2006/12/0,5: CIA-RDP80-0081OA001300070006-3
25X1.
SECRET
2 .,
25X1
25X1
25X1
so
y n was serving as an army oa cer In the GnR. As he
mailed them many packages of various products from Germany, this
family realized that, consumer goods were readily available there,
probably more available than in the USSR. Nevertheless, they oonw.
sidered these goods tea be expensive and believed that workers in the
GDR lived under worse.oonditions than workers in the Soviet Union.
ope. a on believed that they enjoyed a t of living
than inhabitants of Western countries. a poor Soviet
famil whose
:[ormer. a, of the Soviet Army, who had
er a in Germany after the war all s id that they had been
impressed w vnnrl housing and clothing' of the German population.
However, impressions gained. abroad had little In-
fluence on the average Soviet below a certain educational level. The
average Soviet manwas little concerned with some comforts of life
which we take. for. granted. He was satisfied if he merely had a bed._
a.n.d a' oimple wardrobe in, his home. He. was mainly in
eating- well and having; enough to drink.
if the
F
wages, of the average Soviet worker were suddenly increased to the
levelof Western Eir.opean wages, he would squander it all on food
and liquor.
SECRET
followed an irregular course. Some subsequent price cuts were more
effective than others. Moreover, some price reduction laws were
followed by an increase of production norms at Plant No. 393.
2. Prices-of consumer goods sold in Kraenogorsk stores and markets were
generally the sam
i
e as
n luoscow. K.rasnogorsk could be considered a
suburb of Moscow in this respect. Perhaps a few articles sold in
Krasnogorsk State stores were occasionally a. few kope' more ex-.
pensive than in Moscow. The only noticeable difference concerned
open-market prices. Moscow open markets sold some items at lower
prices because they were larger9 and thus the scene, of more competition.
Recent -price cuts introduced in Krasnogorsk primarily affected luxury
items such as wine and vodka and had little effect on basic food
products. The local Soviet population regarded this developme:ai; with
dissatisfaction.
There was some variation in the availability of goods in Moscow and
in Krasnogorsk. It was simple to obtain raedium-and good quality
suit material in Moscow. Only cheap material was available in
Kra*nogorsk. It was also apparent that some goods which previously
had been readily available in Kraenogorsk were difficult to obtain
there after 1950. This was particularly true of textile goods.
Butter and some meat products were also seldom available locally
after 195O , although they had been Vcal -hivolt abundant in prrrtri rmc,
Soviet Attiturlee toward Standard of Li vines
5. Some, maybe moet,of the Soviet workers and camployee,s at Plant No. 393
evidently realized that living conditions in Western Europe were better
than in the Soviet Union. This was especially true of former
Ok~_tarbciter J-ovi et s employed in Germany during the wary who favorably
comIpared their living conditions in Germany during the war with
present conditions In the Soviet Union.
6. On the other hand, undoubtedly a good. percentage of the Soviet
1 ti
Approved For Release 2006/12/05: CIA-RDP80-0081OA001300070006-3
 Approved For Release 2006/12/05: CIA-RDP80-0081 OA001300070006-3
SECRET
3
8. The Soviet women were different. It was astounding to see how well
they dressed with the little money they had at their disposal.
Tka-s'y evidently even out down oh their eating in order to dress a
iitt :e . better0
$o.._.si.
9. The German specialists lived in a group of apartment buildings which
belonged to Plant No. 393. Many Soviet workers and employees lived
in the same type of apartment building. These were two-story buildings.
each ,ontaining eight apartments. They contained two standard types
of apartments. One consisted of a kitchens a toilet, and four rooms
which were 18, 16, 119 and 11 square meter- in size. The second type
of apartment consisted of a kitchens a toilet, a small room (five
square meters) set aside for, but not used as9 a bate and three rooms
which were. 17, 169?and 15 square meters in size.
in an 18-s ware-meter room in the first -type of apartmen
share:he kitchen and toilet facilities with
.inhabi an s o e apartment. paid monthly
rubles for rent, 11 rubles for heatTan.d three rubles for water.
10. .Althotigh the German specialists by no means had spacious accommodations,
we were not packed in ge tightly as Soviet families. An many as
four Germans lived in two rooms s 16 and five square meters in air,*.
However, it was not uncommon for six Soviets to live in a 16-square-
meter room. The Soviet plant worker's and employees oompl?ztned about
4-heir poor housing, their dirty, crowded apartments.
11. The higher plant offtoiala, as well as army officers from a nearby
garrison, lived in apartment buildings which were far better furnished
'and maintained than those inhabited by common workers. Furthermore
tainly were allotted more g space. For a ample,II
one Soviet family of three lived in two 11-square-meter
:rooms*
12. Soviet tenants paid Iona rent for the same space than 41d the Gevmar~
specialists, presumablT' bmoauxse they lived under more crowded oondi-
.taions. ,
13. A oommiderable amount of housing was constructed in Iraeno,3orsk in
recent years., This construction included not only a large number
of apartment buildings of the standard type as described earlier,
but also many small private bungalows. These bungalows were
Finnish prefabri,oated housee, as well as frame houses of Soviet eon<
struotion. The latter houses were one-story structures with external
dimensions of five by six zsaetgre. t interior of
such houses oonsisted of nothing more than one r. oo
such a house cost 10,000 rubles.
A few people in the town- lived in privately owned houses which they
had inherited. These property owners rented rooms at very high
rates, ,F-- tenant paid 100 rubles per month for a room
eight or. nine. square meters in size,,,.
Corruption
15. Bribery and petty corruption were extremely common occurrences at
Plant No. 393. Plant authorities did not regard such delinquencies
in too.serious a light, perhaps because they themselves had to cover
up for illicit activities. However, Party members were evidently
not as susceptible to bribery as the general.population. They were
evidently under strict discipline i:n this regard. For example, the
female chief of, the guard detachment in our housing area, borrowed
money from me for a period of about six months. 'She was in.
Approved For Release 2006/12/05: CIA-RDP80-0081 OA001300070006-3
 Approved For Release 2006/12/05: CIA-RDP80-0081OA001300070006-3
25X1
SECRY2
4 .-
25X1 16..
25X1 A arse `, s,.1 -j would have been unable to fulfill his ;mop's plans if
he did not "play ball" with this system.
25X1 17. The Soviet employees who ins.pectedipartment.s eagerly accepted
financial difficulty as she had to pay for the upkeep of her
husband in a tuberculosis sanatorium. Party authorities got wind
of this practice. he woman wsa a Party member. Party officials
then interrogated this woman regarding these loans.
the woman was cleared
it was an accepted practice to offer a shop boas
something in :re urn for his services in filling a production order.
bribes. A few rubles or a package of cigarettes were sufficient
to seal the lips of an inspector if he caught you using a hot plate
25X1 illegally. The Fuards who were supposed to accompany us on trips
to Moscow would also look the other way if they were offered five
or ten rubles.
Foreign Radio Broadcasts
25X1
it is noteworthy that Soviet plant employees were very a n execs e
in buying radios from German specialists when the latter were
repatriated. They were always particularly concerned about the
short-wave reception of the radio:s they purchased.
Most Soviet citizens purchasing radios in the local store bought
"Baltika" models equipped with short-wavp^ reception. The "Ural"
model which' was next in dewands; was also equipped to
receive short-wave broadcasts. More ra loss were on sale in 194
in Kraj;noi orsk tstoreri than in later ~aaar .
,al i apartments in large apartment buildings in
25X1
2gX1
25X1
Trasnogorek were equipped with loud-speaker network outlets. The
Finnish prefabricated houses were probably the only dwellings not
connected to the loud.-speaker network. At any rate it was an
established 'fact that Every apartment wa.?s furnished
with such an outlet.
I an increasing interest in television in the Krasnogorak area.
some seven or eight television sets were to be
found in. the own, o judge by the number of television aerials.
Commentst statements presents almost no,
general information on Soviet plant operations and working conditions which
'ham Yin+ 'hnnn i rHyiously reported in this aeZieo,-
Soviet workars were sometimes raised soon arter t lip Introduction of prloe
Approved For Release 2006/12/05: CIA-RDP80-00810A001300070006-3
production norms or