Who’s in Control? Job Creation Co-Operatives in a Capitalist Economy

Abstract

In Britain a new generation of worker co-operatives have emerged that differ from earlier phases of co-operative development in that they have been formed primarily to create jobs in response to the high level of unemployment. All the major political parties favour co-operative development and co-operative support organisations of various kinds have been set up at local and national level. This paper argues that such ‘job creation’ co-operatives and the organisations that support them have come under great pressure to prioritise job creation as against the formulation of effective and secure co-operative structures. This pressure arises because the policies surrounding co-operative development have not taken account of the severe economic pressures the co-operatives face and the consequent effect upon their ability to sustain the co-operative principles of ownership and control of the business by the people who work in it. In the light of the specific needs and problems of the new generation of worker co-operatives the paper argues that the concepts of co-operative ownership and control need to be reassessed, in particular in relation to membership. The distinction between a co-operative and a collective is also re-evaluated together with the need for co-operative structures to be replicated in other aspects of the local community.