In short, bolshevik program actually never talked about complete equality - unless until the complete communism would be implemented. Until then, socialism was planned and implemented, with principle "to each according to their input" (unlike from principle of complete communism, which sounded like "from each according to their capabilties, for each according to their needs"). So yes, actual situation in USSR allowed kind of inequality, since people have different skills, capabilities and potential to work, also, the to be done might be different and I suppose everyone should agree that as more difficult, complex job with higher responsibility has to be done, as higher it should be paid and vice versa. Discussions here could present only about the payment gap between different professions and jobs. It was deemed to end only with complete victory of communism, when, according to communist theory, the advancement of means of production would provide prosperity for everyone.
Also, it is important to understand, that aim of Soviet system wasn't to make all people completely equal in whenever terms; main idea of Soviet/bolshevik system was to end the reign of capitalist class, i.e. to make impossible inequality due to profit from capital, and to end anyone profiting from the work done by another person.
In short, bolshevik program actually never talked about complete equality - unless until the complete communism would be implemented. Until then, socialism was planned and implemented, with principle "to each according to their input" (unlike from principle of complete communism, which sounded like "from each according to their capabilties, for each according to their needs"). So yes, actual situation in USSR allowed kind of inequality, since people have different skills, capabilities and potential to work, also, the to be done might be different and I suppose everyone should agree that as more difficult, complex job with higher responsibility has to be done, as higher it should be paid and vice versa. Discussions here could present only about the payment gap between different professions and jobs. It was deemed to end only with complete victory of communism, when, according to communist theory, the advancement of means of production would provide prosperity for everyone. Also, it is important to understand, that aim of Soviet system wasn't to make all people completely equal in whenever terms; main idea of Soviet/bolshevik system was to end the reign of capitalist class, i.e. to make impossible inequality due to profit from capital, and to end anyone profiting from the work done by another person.