Order of the Red Banner of Labour



The Order of the Red Banner of Labour (Орден Трудового Красного Знамени) was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to the Soviet state and society in the fields of production, science, culture, literature, the arts, education, health, social and other spheres of labour activities. It is the labour counterpart of the military Order of the Red Banner. A few institutions and factories, being the pride of Soviet Union, also received the order. The Order of the Red Banner of Labour began solely as an award of the Russian SFSR on December 28, 1920. The all-Union equivalent was established by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet on September 7, 1928 and approved by another decree on September 15, 1928. The Order's statute and regulations were modified by multiple successive decrees of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, on May 7, 1936, on June 19, 1943, on March 28, 1980, and on July 18, 1980.

Award statute
The Order of the Red Banner of Labour can be awarded to citizens of the USSR, to businesses, associations, institutions, organizations, and allied autonomous republics, territories, autonomous regions, districts, cities and other localities; it may also be awarded to persons who are not citizens of the USSR, as well as to enterprises, institutions and organizations located in foreign countries:
 * for great achievements in the development of industry, agriculture, farming, construction, transport and other sectors of the economy, to improve the efficiency of social production;
 * for the highest growth rates in labour productivity, improved product quality, development and introduction of more advanced manufacturing processes;
 * for consistently high results in the implementation and overfulfillment of planned assignments and socialist obligations undertaken;
 * for major advances in increasing the productivity of agricultural crops and the productivity of livestock breeding, increasing manufacturing output and sales of state agricultural products;
 * for contributions in the development of science and technology, the introduction of the latest achievements in the national economy, for inventions and innovations which are of great technical - economic significance;
 * for contributions in strengthening national defense;
 * for very fruitful activities in Soviet culture, literature and the arts;
 * for contributions in education and communist political education to the younger generations, in highly specialised training, health, trade, catering, housing, utilities, housing, public services;
 * for special achievements in the development of physical culture and Sports;
 * for important achievements in the field of state and public activities, the strengthening of socialist legality and the rule of law;
 * for great achievements in economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation between the USSR and other states.

The Order of the Red Banner of Labour could be awarded multiple times to the same recipient for successive deeds and long time merit.

The Order of the Red Banner of Labour was worn on the left side of the chest and in the presence of other awards of the USSR, was located immediately after the Order of the Red Banner. If worn in the presence of Orders or medals of the Russian Federation, the latter have precedence.

Award description
The design of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour evolved over the years. Its original design, called "type 1" was amended in 1936, this new variant will be identified as "type 2".

Type 1
The "type 1" Order consisted of a 38 mm wide by 43 mm high silver badge in the shape of a cogwheel, at center, a disc bordered along its entire outer diameter by panicles of wheat. Protruding from under the lower half of the central disc, a red enamelled triangle pointing downwards. On the central disc in the background, a hydro electric dam, at center, a gilded hammer and sickle, at the top, a waving red banner bearing the inscription "Proletarians of the World, unite!" (“Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь!”). At the very bottom of the cogwheel, the relief inscription "USSR" (“СССР”) on a stylised horizontal shield bisected by a smaller cogwheel meshing into the larger one. On the otherwise plain reverse, a recess at center bearing a threaded post, two rivets used to secure the hammer and sickle and the award serial number engraved on the lower portion opposite the "USSR" inscription. The Order was secured to clothing with a threaded screw and nut arrangement. The earlier nuts were 28 mm in diameter, later ones measured 32 mm.

Type 2
The "type 2" Order also consisted of a silver badge in the shape of a cogwheel, it measured 38 mm wide by 44 mm high. On the lower circumference of the cogwheel, the relief inscription "Proletarians of the World, unite!" (“Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь!”), below the cogwheel, a red enamelled relief five pointed star superimposed on a shield from which four short panicles of wheat protrude left and right. At the center, a disc surrounded by a gilded wreath of oak leaves bearing the relief image of a hydro electric dam, below the dam, blue enamelled water, at the center of the disc, the gilded hammer and sickle, from the inner left side of the disc, a gilded mast bearing a waving red enamelled banner protruding from the central disc, covering the upper portion of the cogwheel and protruding past its outer upper edge on which "USSR" (“СССР”) is inscribed in gilded letters. Along the outer circumference of the central disc's wreath, white enamelled slots spaced equally on the cogwheel. On the otherwise plain reverse, a concave recess at center bearing a threaded post, eight rivets (only three rivets on the post 1943 variant) used to secure the various parts to the badge and the award serial number engraved on the lower portion below the recess. The Order was secured to clothing with a threaded screw and a 33 mm in diameter nut until 1943 when it was secured by a ring through the medal suspension loop to a pentagonal mount covered by an overlapping 24 mm wide light blue silk moiré ribbon with 4 mm wide dark blue edge stripes.

Recipients (partial list)
The individuals listed below were recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour.

The first recipient of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour of the RSFSR was Nikita Menchukov for saving an important bridge from being destroyed by flowing ice.

Order of the Red Banner of Labour of the USSR number 1 was presented to the Putilov (later Kirov) Works in Leningrad. The first individual awardees were V. Fedetov, A. Shelagin and M. Kyatkovsky for the rescue of a polar expedition.

Mikhail Gorbachev received the Order of the Red Banner of Labour for harvesting a record crop on his family's collective farm in 1949 at age 18, an honour which was very rare for someone so young. He is one of the Order's youngest recipients.

Six time recipients

 * Belyaev, Nikolay Maksimovich, founder and head of the optical industry
 * Protazanov, Alexander Konstantinovich, first secretary of the East Kazakhstan Party organisation
 * Smelyakov, Nicholaï Nicholaevich, Minister of General Machine Building of the USSR, director of the factory "Red Sormovo"

Five times recipients

 * Green, Arnold Carlovich, Soviet diplomat, Party and State figure
 * Leontovich, Mikhail Alexandrovich, physicist and academician
 * Alekseenko, Gennady Vasil'evich, a specialist in the field of energy
 * Belov, Aleksandr Fedorovich, academician (metallurgy)
 * Vlasov, Pavel Semenovich, Hero of Socialist Labour, director of the Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrates Plant
 * Grafov, Leonid Efimovich, Deputy Minister of the Coal Industry
 * GrishinIvan Timofeevich, Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade
 * Gundobin, Nikolai Alekseevich, Hero of Socialist Labour, 1st Deputy Minister of Transport of the USSR
 * Dokukin, Aleksandr Viktorovich, Corresponding Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences
 * Il'ichev, Leonid Fedorovich, secretary of the CPSU Central Committee
 * Karlov, Vladimir Alekseevich, Hero of Socialist Labour, department head of the CPSU Central Committee.
 * Kurchatov, Boris Vasil'evich, doctor of chemical sciences
 * Maletin, Pavel Andreevich, Deputy Minister of Finance of the USSR (1939-1945, 1960-1969)
 * Petukhov, Konstantin Dmitrievich, Hero of Socialist Labour, General Director of PEMSO "Dynamo"
 * Romanov, Alexei Vladimirovich, editor of the newspaper "Soviet Culture"
 * Sosnov, Ivan Dmitrievich, Minister of Transport Construction of the USSR
 * Tamara Khanum, People's Artist of USSR (1956), Uzbek dancer
 * Chibisov, Konstantin, Corresponding Member of USSR Academy of Sciences (1946)

Four times

 * Gamzatov, Rasul Gamzatovich, poet
 * Revutskyi, Levko Mykolajovych, composer, teacher, and activist
 * Orujev, Sabit Atayevich, Deputy Prime-minister of Azerbaijan SSR (1957–1959)
 * Balanchivadze, Andreï Melitonovich, composer
 * Voss, Augusts Eduardovich, politician and party functionary
 * Dudinskaya, Natalia Mikhailovna, prima ballerina
 * Kapp, Eugen Arturovich, composer and music educator
 * Patriarch Alexy I, patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church
 * Rasizade, Shamil Alievich, deputy prime-minister of Azerbaijan SSR (1970–1984)
 * Ulánova, Galina Sergeyevna, prima ballerina

Three times

 * Chernenko, Konstantin Ustinovich, fifth General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
 * Andropov, Yuri Vladimirovich, fourth General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
 * Frumkin, Alexander Naumovich, electrochemist, Hero of Socialist Labour
 * Yakovlev, Alexander Nikolaevich, politician and historian
 * Chukhrai, Grigori Naumovich, film director and screenwriter
 * Begaliev, Sopubek Begalievich, politician
 * Kapelyushnikov, Matvei Alkunovich, mechanical engineer, Hero of Socialist Labour
 * Flyorov, Georgy Nikolayevich, nuclear physicist
 * Piotrovsky, Boris Borisovich, academician, historian-orientalist and archaeologist
 * Khalatnikov, Isaak Markovich, physicist

Twice

 * Tupolev, Andrei Nikolayevich, aircraft designer
 * Feoktistov, Konstantin Petrovich, cosmonaut and eminent space engineer
 * Khachaturian, Aram Ilyich, composer
 * Ginzburg, Vitaly Lazarevich, theoretical physicist, astrophysicist, Nobel laureate
 * Khrennikov, Tikhon Nikolayevich, composer and pianist
 * Zel'dovich, Yakov Borisovich, physicist
 * Ryzhkov, Nikolai Ivanovich Ryzhkov, politician
 * Rodnina, Irina Konstantinovna, Olympic gold medalist figure skater
 * Ilyushin, Vladimir Sergeyevich, test pilot
 * Vorontsov, Yuli Mikhailovich diplomat and ambassador

Single awards

 * Kollontai, Alexandra Mikhailovna, first female government minister in Europe, world's first female ambassador in modern times
 * Mil, Mikhail Leontyevich, aerospace engineer
 * Dyomin, Lev Stepanovich, cosmonaut
 * Chernomyrdin, Viktor Stepanovich, Prime Minister of Russia (1992–1998)
 * Semyonov, Nikolay Nikolayevich, physicist and chemist
 * Ivan Gevorkian, prominent Soviet Armenian surgeon and scientist.
 * Primakov, Yevgeny Maksimovich, Speaker of the Soviet of the Union of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union
 * Yevtushenko, Yevgeny Aleksandrovich, poet, novelist, essayist, dramatist, screenwriter, actor, editor, and film director
 * Alexandrov, Pavel Sergeyevich, mathematician
 * Shukshin, Vasily Makarovich, actor, writer, screenwriter and movie director
 * Yakovlev, Alexander Sergeyevich, aeronautical engineer
 * Anatoly Karpov, World Chess Champion
 * Jack Littlepage, US mining expert and Soviet Deputy Commissar
 * Mikhail Shuisky, opera singer
 * Lyudmila Shevtsova - athlete, olympic champion and 800 m world record holder.

Institutions, organisations, localities

 * Komsomol
 * Vilnius University
 * City of Kovrov
 * Saint Petersburg State University
 * City of Mykolaiv
 * City of Podolsk
 * Bolshevichka clothes factory
 * Zvyazda state newspaper
 * East Siberian Railway
 * National Library of Russia
 * Kuban State University of Technology
 * Moscow State University of Fine Chemical Technologies
 * 8th Soviet Rifle Division