What professions in the USSR were the highest paid

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

For some reason, some are sure that the salary that a Soviet citizen could count on was usually 120 rubles. Yes, it happened, but still the salaries in the USSR were different. Sometimes an ordinary "hard worker" received much more per month than his leader. Today it is difficult to imagine such a thing. There were also very highly paid professions, whose representatives could afford a lot. Read how much Soviet officials were paid, what benefits cosmonauts enjoyed, and why the profession of a turner was prestigious.

Civil servants and a seven-course lunch for 1 ruble

During the Soviet era, it was not customary to brag about one's wealth. Today it is possible to bear the official name of a millionaire, but earlier this was impossible. Who lived richly? Officials, of course. Members of the Politburo and many other civil servants traveled exclusively in official cars, rested in beautiful dachas provided by the state, visited expensive resorts, and ate well and tasty. But it's not that simple. The benefits that went to these people directly depended on the position held. Often, so-called party cleansings were carried out, and cars with dachas changed their owners.

Nevertheless, officials were given the opportunity to buy the most scarce food products at ridiculous prices. For example, at some special bases back in 1976, for just 1 ruble, an official could buy a six-course meal, which included, among other things, red and black caviar, sturgeon. But it wasn't just the benefits that attracted people. High-ranking officials could boast of huge salaries for those times - up to 1,200 rubles. The most wealthy were considered diplomats. Their salaries were very high, and there was also an opportunity to buy any valuable things abroad, even imported cars.

Athletes: not as it is now, but very good or cars as a gift

Today, professional athletes receive a lot of money. In the USSR, hockey players and footballers could not boast of huge fees, but they were not too small either. For example, the standard rate of a Dynamo Kiev footballer was 250 rubles, and the athletes received another 100 rubles each in case of victory. Prizes were given for winning prizes at championships.

In the CSKA and Dynamo clubs, in addition to salaries, bonuses, and prize money, some amounts were also provided for seniority, which could be very large - about 300 rubles. But not only money attracted athletes. For example, they could buy a car out of line or even receive one as a gift for winning. Sometimes the cars were not kept for themselves, but sold. The size of the salary depended on the club. It is known that the lowest salaries were at Zenit.

Cosmonauts and what the family of Yuri Gagarin received

Many Soviet boys dreamed of becoming astronauts. Of course, they were attracted by romance, not high salaries. But the salaries of the space explorers were really very large. In addition, after a space flight, each astronaut received a car and a lifetime payment of gasoline as a gift. There were other benefits as well, as well as quality free spa treatment.

The famous cosmonaut Georgy Grechko talked about how space flights were paid for at a press conference in 2007. He said that after returning after a long stay in space (and it was about the 1974 flight, which lasted a month), he received a large sum - 5,000 rubles. Considering that it was all a long time ago, the reward was impressive. In those days, a Volga car could be bought for 6,000 rubles. Of course, the amounts are large, but the risk is also incredibly high.

The most revered cosmonaut was Yuri Gagarin. He received a car, a house and an apartment as a gift. Parents were presented with new housing with furniture, household appliances and electronics. Children were pampered with clothes and toys. The cosmonaut's brother and sister received 1,000 rubles each.

Bad for health - good for the wallet

They paid well in the Soviet Union for work that had a negative impact on health. The difficult working conditions were taken into account and compensated for with good salaries. For example, miners, especially professional tunnellers, earned good money. To make it clear - in the eightieth year of the 20th century, working as a tunneller, one could earn up to 1,000 rubles a month. If you wanted to set a goal and become a record miner, your earnings would get even higher.

The amount was influenced by a variety of conditions: there was a production rate, seniority was taken into account, past awards for good work, and, of course, party members always had an advantage. For their hard work, miners had various benefits, large bonuses, additional vacations and additional payments for seniority. It is interesting that an ordinary miner could get more than a leader who did not go down into the mine.

Need money - go turner

It was pleasant that the USSR highly appreciated good specialists in various fields. Highly qualified workers, skilled locksmiths and turners, competent equipment customizers could count on high salaries. The salary consisted of a base rate and a qualification bonus (rank). There were interesting restrictions - the director of the plant could not have a salary higher than the highest paid worker in this plant. In the early eighties of the XX century, the best representatives of working specialties received up to 1000 rubles. They also enjoyed various benefits, rested in sanatoriums, had an advantage in obtaining housing and other pleasant bonuses. In fact, the salary of a super-professional turner could be compared with the amount paid to a university professor or director of a research institute.

Well, in the past, a special profession was the craft of an executioner. They lived not quite like ordinary people, and earned not only on executions.