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10/20/1985 - Managing Romanian Farms by Bruce F. Hall

NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT WRITER S CONSEIT INSTITUTE OF CURRENTWORLD AFFAIRS BFH Bruce F Hall Bucharest Romanis October Mr Peter Martin Institute Current World Affairs Wheelock House Wheelock Street nover New Hampshire 03755 Dear Peter Harvest season footnote newspapers Romania prime television Thst hours Romnian television night least devoted reporting harvest results around country Party officials Ministry Dis trict agricultural officers state collective managers supposed field exhorting their workers greater efforts during height harvest evertheless manager collective Prshova district north Bucharest found three subordinates around This collective formed years hectares members Tods almost number workers about Like other farms majority workers women about percent average force fairly The refineries nearby Ploiesti drawn large numbers young workers especially better paying industrial This means women doing manual labor farms generally Romania means proportion collective incomes contributions pension funds Romanian collective farms percent gross value their duction pension contributions The production structure particular collective rather unusual It specialized average Romanian collective producing mainly grain vegetables fodder dairy One contributors income small scale industries developed process their Bruce Hall agricultural economist Fellow Institute Current World Affairs studying agricultural sectors East European countries BFH I products They mills flour animsl feeds bakery plants making cream snack bottling juices laboratory produces mushroom spawn brick fctory Most these small plants designed supply village neighboring production mterials products distributed widely around country Although farms industrial activities usually developed The really unusual feature however income largely personality manager Romanian agriculture centralized detailed managers reduced being functionaries whose purpose carry directives state Only manager strong personality fight bureaucrats through decisions might maximize potential natural conditions labor force This means bending regulations ignoring maintaining tight labor force In other words manager certainly description Since became manager years change state directives avoid having mandatory amouts cotton tobacco instead ializing grains which profitable He collective manager stock HolStein Friesian dairy which supposed reserwed exclusively state farms particularly aggressive starting industrial tivities without approval His method operation remarkable since member Romanian Communist Party managers This explain however successful manager still rather Ministry Theoretically managers should considerable input planning process because planning supposed bottom Each tentative production drawn managers based guidelines provided central authorities These plans submiitted district agricultural offices where viewed before being Ministry Agriculture which submits draft State Planning Committee At stage adjustments plans conform district national resources needs BFH I comes collective substantially manager originally The specifies number indicators exactly livestock product expected produce price distributed delivered state payments collective members forth It specifies resources production example hectares hours labor fertilizer quantities machinery chemical applications All these indicators based called technical norms Which example hours labor should required certain amount certain number cows_ should weight fattening animals With these indicators norms manager manage negotiate levels indicators superiors district Ministry reasons llective should given slack meeting norms For example might point higher rainfall lacks drying facilities fodder results feeding close norms should given indicators easier achieve Negotiating skill important eliminating indicators specifying production likely negative effect income Further limiting capacity collective manager decisions authority finances That controlled Bank Agriculture Food Industry The Bank controls investment lending agricultural sector holds funds farms The Bank effectively control agent monitors collective meets For example falls short planned output percent Bank reduce manager salary proportion The Bank polices meeting resource norms releasing funds farms should require production inputs And falls short planned output Bank block funds forcing borrow money higher interest rates Even gosts retail sales supposed directly Bank But manager strong enough sonality choose these regulations direct control receipts BFH I So principal managers other negotiation bureaucracy maintaining enough control their labor force insure workers their meeting targets The managers district Party officials leaders annual harvest campaigns observed harvest cmpaign action collective Prahova district The harvest finish I because weather But juging field operations I where being harvested entirely probably always With degree labor labor management skills mnager particularly important This factor probaly other makes authoritarian personality other successfu manager there system Sincerely Bruce Hall Received Hanover