With two decades of existence, this branch of industry belongs to the group of older economic sectors in the Novi Bečej sub-region. It is represented by two economic organizations:
1. Basic Organization of Associated Labor "Tisa" - Novi Bečej,
2. Knitwear Industry "Mladost" - Novi Bečej.
The Basic Organization of Associated Labor "Tisa" - Novi Bečej is located in new facilities, in the industrial zone of Novi Bečej, next to the Factory of Equipment and Accessories. After several organizational changes that occurred during its development, it now operates as part of the Clothing and Parachute Industry "Kluz" from Belgrade, as the basic organization of associated labor (hereinafter referred to as BOAL "Tisa" Novi Bečej).
The beginning of this economic organization dates back to 1959. At that time, with only six craftsmen-workers, it started its activity as a craftsman-tailoring cooperative. Initially, this group of tailors provided services only to the citizens of Novi Bečej and residents of rural settlements in the vicinity. With gradual development, the number of workers increased, and services and initial production changed. Already in 1963, there was an expansion of activities and the first reorganization, or re-registration of the cooperative into a company for the production of ready-made clothing items, under the name "Uzor" Novi Bečej. Since then, the program production orientation has been focused on the production of clothing for children and youth. At the same time, while paving the way for faster development, the organization began establishing cooperation and stronger ties with significantly more developed and already established producers of this type in the immediate and wider surroundings. First, cooperation was established with the Clothing Industry "Novitet" in Novi Sad, and already in 1963, "Savremena konfekcija Uzor" from Novi Bečej started opening its own stores in the wider area. After a few years, cooperation between "Uzor" and the Clothing and Parachute Industry "Kluz" from Belgrade began. With tighter integration and expansion of cooperation, in 1978, the "Savremena konfekcija Uzor" was integrated with "Kluz" Belgrade. Since then, the entire production of Novi Bečej clothing "Uzor" has been carried out according to the "Kluz" program. Thus, one of the basic prerequisites for significantly larger, specialized production was created. However, working in cramped spaces with outdated equipment hindered the faster pace of development of modern textile industry. Therefore, efforts were made to build a new factory, procure appropriate equipment, and prepare staff for work in new conditions.
Initially, as part of "Kluz", and later - as the Basic Organization of Associated Labor "Tisa" in Novi Bečej, this economic organization made great efforts to modernize its production departments. By moving to new facilities in 1971, BOAL "Tisa" Novi Bečej replaced its old machines with new ones. Gradually, single-needle sewing machines were replaced by double-needle ones, with specially built-in programmers. Special machines for certain parts of the production process were also procured to minimize manual labor.
Alongside changes in equipment and production technology, the structure of the workforce also changed. In the observed six-year period, among workers classified by educational attainment, there was the greatest increase in workers with secondary education. A mild increase was also observed among workers with lower educational attainment. It is characteristic that only one worker has higher education, and among 420 workers, none have tertiary education. In the second qualification group, the greatest increase was achieved by semi-skilled workers. Compared to 1970, the number of these workers quadrupled by 1975. The number of unskilled workers tripled, and a slight increase was also recorded among skilled workers. There were no changes in the group of highly skilled workers, although with the introduction of new equipment and production technology, an increase in the number of workers with tertiary education would be expected.
In the last three-year period, from 1979 to 1981, there were again changes in the qualification structure of the workforce. The largest share of the total number of employees consists of semi-skilled and skilled workers, who acquired their qualifications mostly within the parent organization. The number of unskilled and highly skilled workers did not change significantly. In the structure of workers by educational attainment, compared to the earlier observed period, significant changes occurred. The total number of workers with lower, secondary, and tertiary education increased, and in 1981, one worker with tertiary education was employed. Overall, this qualification structure of the workforce provided opportunities for the organization to more quickly adopt new work technologies, increase labor productivity, and more easily pave the way for its products to the global market.
Age Structure of the Workforce is also satisfactory. The average age of workers is around 30 years old. In terms of gender structure, female workforce predominates, accounting for 87.1%. Such gender structure of the workforce is characteristic of the entire textile industry in our country, as it involves tasks that women perform very successfully.
The overall trend of the workforce after the integration of "Uzor" with "Kluz" has a satisfactory pace. From 1971, when the work organization "Tisa" was formed, to 1981, the number of workers increased almost threefold. In 1971, BOAL "Tisa" in Novi Bečej had a total of 182 workers. Five years later, in 1975, this number increased to 420 workers, and by 1981, "Tisa" had 535 employed workers. With increasingly successful operations, constant production growth, and exporting products to the European market, the number of employed workers in BOAL "Tisa" is continuously increasing.
The Basic Organization of Associated Labor "Tisa" in Novi Bečej is engaged in the production of diverse men's and women's clothing for adults and children. Almost the entire annual production is exported to the European market. This work organization has established the most successful business cooperation with a company from the FR Germany. Through years of successful cooperation, both parties have established mutual obligations, which are mutually fulfilled in due time and can serve as a positive example to other work organizations. Before the start of each seasonal production, the types and models of clothing items to be produced, the total number, and delivery deadlines are jointly determined. The foreign buyer promptly delivers raw materials and all auxiliary materials to the manufacturer, takes over the finished products, and ships them themselves. This avoids almost all transportation costs, which in other work organizations often have a significant share in the final product price.
The Knitwear Industry "Mladost" - Novi Bečej was founded at the end of 1968, and after some preparations, it started operating in early 1969. In 1973, it was established as the Organization of Associated Labor "Mladost" in Novi Bečej (hereinafter referred to as OAL "Mladost" Novi Bečej). This collective is engaged in knitting children's, men's, and women's clothing. From its establishment until 1976, "Mladost" underwent various organizational changes that significantly slowed down the pace of its development. In this period, three significant stages can be identified regarding key changes in organizational and production terms:
The first stage of development covers the period from the establishment of "Mladost" until the end of 1970. During this time, the production of this work organization had a craftsmanship character, and it independently appeared on the market with its own products.
The period from 1971 to 1975 represents the second stage of development. This is a period of strong business and technical cooperation between "Mladost" and "Ineks-Vesna" Children's Knitwear from Sombor. During this time, this Novi Bečej work organization gradually modernized its production and shifted from a craftsmanship to an industrial mode of production.
In parallel with the gradual modernization of production, within the cooperation with "Ineks-Vesna" from Sombor, certain organizational changes occurred, preventing "Mladost" from fully becoming independent as a work organization more quickly. In a dependent position and working under special conditions, "Mladost" only provided knitting and clothing services for children's clothing items, while "Vesna" from Sombor independently appeared as a manufacturer and seller of finished products.
After five years of working under such conditions, in 1975, the third stage of development of the Novi Bečej knitwear begins. "Mladost" terminates the unsatisfactory cooperation with "Vesna" from Sombor and starts independently paving its way among similar organizations in our country. However, for several years, it has been facing problems that are very difficult and slow to resolve, hindering a faster pace of independent development. Among the unresolved problems, the most important ones are: insufficient financial resources for normal operations, inadequate equipment with all necessary machines for complete industrial production, lack of adequate skilled personnel, unsatisfactory working conditions, and problems with timely placement, i.e., realization of production in the domestic and foreign markets.
Unable to withstand the competition of much more developed economic organizations of this kind in our country, which have long been affirmed by the high quality of their products, "Mladost" has oriented its production towards knitwear for preschool children. In this area of knitwear, "Mladost" already has rich experience and currently achieves satisfactory results in both domestic and foreign markets. Now, Novi Bečej knitwear products can be found on the domestic market throughout Yugoslavia. The greatest success among foreign customers has been achieved with Czechoslovakia.
In addition to the challenges of independent market entry, "Mladost" has also faced difficulties in securing raw materials for its own production. During the period of joint operations with the Children's Knitwear work organization "Vesna" from Sombor, its business partner provided the raw materials. After terminating this cooperation, Novi Bečej knitwear procured raw materials in the Slovenian region, in Maribor and Škofja Loka. Occasionally, when certain products required special synthetics, "Mladost" obtained certain types of raw materials in the Vojvodina region. Considering the difficult position of the entire textile industry in Yugoslavia, primarily due to the lack of raw materials mainly procured from outside Yugoslavia, for stable production and secure placement of finished products, it would be beneficial to establish cooperation with a company from Western European countries. Similar to the business cooperation established by BOAL "Tisa" with a West German company, the foreign company would provide raw materials and other materials necessary for the production of knitwear clothing items and would take over certain finished products, while "Mladost" would be obliged to produce and deliver them on time and with high quality. To achieve all this, it is necessary for the entire collective and other socio-political forces to invest significantly more effort.
Modern and efficient operation in difficult economic conditions presupposes complete factory equipment and a qualified workforce. However, OAL "Mladost" still does not have a satisfactory qualification structure. The largest representation is of unskilled and semi-skilled workers, who acquired their incomplete qualifications within the work organization itself. These workers make up 80% of the total workforce. The remaining 20% are skilled workers and workers with secondary and tertiary education, which is not sufficient for successful work in modern knitwear industry.
Looking at the development of the textile industry as a whole, it can be concluded that great efforts have been made by these work collectives and the municipality to stabilize and improve production and operations in this economic activity. However, due to the aforementioned problems, "Mladost" in knitwear still does not achieve satisfactory business results by far. Therefore, the next five-year development plan envisages investment in the renewal, replenishment, and modernization of equipment, creating better hygiene and technical working conditions, and completing the production cycle. In BOAL "Tisa", the reconstruction of the production hall is underway to facilitate the production process, and in OAL "Mladost", investment in new production capacities is beginning. With the final implementation of the development plans by 1985, production stabilization and more successful economic operations in this industry branch are expected.
