United States

Curious about how worker cooperatives actually work? Watch this Q&A about the nuts and bolts of worker cooperatives with current worker owners and supporters.

Today we’re visiting community-rooted enterprises where people are rethinking power and participation in their lives. Collective housing and cultural co-ops, land trusts and community banks are providing fundamental shifts in our workplaces, living spaces, and economic understanding of local communities.

En 2010, el Democracy at Work Institute (DAWI, por sus siglas en inglés) era un proyecto de la USFWC y aún no se había lanzado como una organización independiente sin fines de lucro, pero McNamara vio el potencial de DAWI para proporcionar una mayor infraestructura crítica para el movimiento.

The Democracy at Work Network was an organization of worker co-op peer advisors that operated successfully for several years, assisting fledgling worker co-ops by offering technical assistance from experienced worker-owners, on a sliding price scale.

We need our national and international organizations to join us. I call on others to participate in building the movement while reframing and redirecting the Federation to become a member-controlled and -focused organization once again.

This year is the 20th Anniversary of the formation of the USFWC. To celebrate, GEO is asking cooperators to share their experiences in the US worker cooperative movement over the last two decades (and beyond).

This year is the 20th Anniversary of the formation of the USFWC. To celebrate, GEO is asking cooperators to share their experiences in the US worker cooperative movement over the last two decades (and beyond).

“Urban Recipe started in 1991 out of one church’s efforts to be in relationship with their community differently beyond the traditional food pantry relationship,” executive director Jeremy Lewis says. Urban Recipe has moved out of that church and now operates and facilitates six food co-ops similar to Co-op 1 and helps operationally support and source food for four additional co-ops in Atlanta that have been through their cooperative pathways training program.

After thirteen years in operation, Float On will be embarking on its next great adventure: converting into a Worker Owned Cooperative, entirely managed and owned by their current staff. Graham and Ashkahn will explain what makes co-ops special, why it can be a meaningful option for transitioning out of your business, and what it takes to pull a crazy plan like this off.

While there are many people who contributed to the founding of the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives, I would like to provide reflections on the role played by the Grassroots Economic Organizing (GEO) Newsletter Collective.