Worker Cooperative Development Models and Approaches
* Article: Worker Cooperative Development Models and Approaches: A Brief Overview. By Jessica Gordon Nembhard, Michael Johnson, Jim Johnson, Len Krimerman, and Ajowa Nzinga Ifateyo
URL = http://www.geo.coop/node/627
Description
"The GEO Collective recognizes a great deal of untapped potential for collaboration and solidarity between organizations using different models to develop worker co-ops. Not only has interest in the development of worker cooperatives increased over the past couple of years in particular, but so has discussion about what are the best models to use and for whom. We hope to contribute to this dialogue by describing (and categorizing) some of the major models in use, and briefly discussing their strengths and weaknesses. We hope that our readers, and members of the forum and July 8, 2011, conference on "Advancing Worker Cooperative Development" (ADWC), will come out with a clearer understanding of the variety of models used to develop worker co-ops, their major components and assumptions behind them. We hope that the conversations and dialogues that are inspired from our summary and the other articles in this issue, and that occur through the ADWC forum and conference, will help us all to gain more clarity about the benefits, advantages, basic accomplishments, limitations and challenges of their particular approaches to worker cooperative development. It is also important to know what is gained and what is given up when certain models or types of approaches are chosen."