I read a while ago that in communist society there is usually a shortage of everything including labor (that also why females were encouraged to work soon after giving birth)
Nope, women were given a generous 3 years off work after birth. In general since all work was equally paid (sort of) and you could just choose your profession, it's possibly harder, more dangerous jobs had issues with filling up positions and you couldn't solve it in a capitalistic way of just paying more (or increasing immigration for cheap, slave labour). Too many people wanted to be writers, artists, etc.. and since there was no invisible hand of the market to force them into more needed profession the labour market was broken.
Not actually 3 years: 1,5 years since 1982 and 112 days before that. And if you stay at home you'll get only 30 rubles per month, it was a very problematic financial situation for many families.
3 years (1,5 years with payment and 1,5 years without) came only in 1989, when you had to spend many hours in long queues to buy anything for your child.
Well, I wasnt thinking about givin time off. Let me be more specific: while in West Germany it was common for females to stop working for more than 18 years (paid by the family), in East Germany there seems to have been social pressure to go back to work after 1 year (or slightly more). (This is annecdotal evidence, but I think it was rarer in East Germany for the wife to completely stop working)
More dangerous and less comfy jobs were paid much more and/or given extra benefits.
Apartments queues were much shorter in small purpose-built industrial towns in the middle of nowhere
Dangerous jobs in bumfucknowhere (far north etc) were paid $$$$$
One couldn't be a writer or artist without attending university. And spots at university were limited. State needs X writers or artists in 5 years so that's how many spots are available this year. On top of that, being jobless was a crime. So you couldn't just pursue artsy stuff and leech off society either.
Same for the rest of the labour market. Central planning wants to kickstart XYZ factory in 5 years? Suddenly related universities get spots in XYZ next fall. You want to do ABC instead? Tough luck. Either study XYZ or do some unskilled job for years till few spots in ABC become available.
