Order of the Red Banner of Labour

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!" (Russian: “Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь!”). At the very bottom of the cogwheel, the relief inscription "USSR" (Russian: “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!" (Russian: “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" (Russian: “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 17, an honor 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-time 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-time recipients

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

Ulánova, Galina Sergeyevna, prima ballerina

Three-time recipients

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

Rasizade, Shamil Alievich, deputy prime-minister of Azerbaijan SSR (1970–1984)

Khalatnikov, Isaak Markovich, physicist

Two-time recipients

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

Züleyxa Seyidməmmədova, fighter pilot

Ilyushin, Vladimir Sergeyevich, test pilot

Vorontsov, Yuli Mikhailovich diplomat and ambassador

Arkady Ilyich Ostashev laureate of the Lenin and state prizes of the, senior test pilot of missiles and space-rocket complexes of OKB-1, the disciple and companion of Sergei Pavlovich Korolev.

Dimitri Venediktov Deputy Health Minister of the USSR

Single awards

Leila Abashidze, actor and writer

Alexandrov, Pavel Sergeyevich, mathematician

Chernomyrdin, Viktor Stepanovich, Prime Minister of Russia (1992–1998)

Clementine Churchill

Dyomin, Lev Stepanovich, cosmonaut

Ivan Gevorkian, prominent Soviet Armenian surgeon and scientist.

Anatoly Karpov, World Chess Champion

Marcus Klingberg, Israeli scientist and Soviet spy

Kollontai, Alexandra Mikhailovna, first female government minister in Europe, world's first female ambassador in modern times

Jack Littlepage, US mining expert and Soviet Deputy Commissar

Vladimir Lobashev, physicist

Mil, Mikhail Leontyevich, aerospace engineer

Sergei Orlov (sculptor), sculptor and painter

Nicolay Paskevich, painter

Ivan Poddubny, professional wrestler

Primakov, Yevgeny Maksimovich, Speaker of the Soviet of the Union of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union

Rogozov, Leonid, physician who took part in the sixth Soviet Antarctic Expedition in 1960–1961

Arnold Rüütel, ex-president of Estonia

Semyonov, Nikolay Nikolayevich, physicist and chemist

Lyudmila Shevtsova - athlete, Olympic champion and 800 m world record holder

Mikhail Shuisky, opera singer

Shukshin, Vasily Makarovich, actor, writer, screenwriter and film director

Tsukerman, Vladimir Moiseevich, orientologist-practitioner, diplomat in Central Asia and Iran, Head of the Middle Eastern and First Eastern Departments

Yakovlev, Alexander Sergeyevich, aeronautical engineer

Yevtushenko, Yevgeny Aleksandrovich, poet, novelist, essayist, dramatist, screenwriter, actor, editor, and film director

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

Crimean Medical Institute

Kamensk-Uralsky Metallurgical Works, in 1978

Yerevan State University