The Soviets are rightfully understood as the political organ through which the Russian working class overthrew their rulers and began to transform the conditions of their existence. But the role of the Russian trade unions, before but especially after the 1917 Revolution, is largely forgotten.

This session will cover how Russia’s challenges manifested in the changing relationship between the Soviets and unions. The respective roles of the institutions will be investigated, and the infamous Bolshevik trade-union debate of 1921 excavated for what it can teach socialists today about what it takes to build a workers’ state.