Incubating worker-owned cooperatives

**jpeaceokc** · 09-28-2011, 10:30 AM

A worker-owned cooperative is a business that is owned and managed by its employees. It differs from an ESOP, where others besides the employees may be stockholders.

AFAIK, at this time there are no worker-owned cooperative businesses here in Oklahoma, but I and some associates hope to change that. We have organized the Oklahoma Worker Cooperative Network, online at http://www.okie.coop , which we hope will be an incubator service for entrepreneurs who wish to put their visions into reality using the worker cooperative business structure.

This is a grassroots economic development/job security initiative. It doesn't depend on what the government may or may not do. We think Oklahoma is a great place to start new businesses, and that worker owned cooperatives, are a great fit for this economy.

To start getting the word out, we have scheduled nine meetings here in central Oklahoma, starting Thursday night, September 29th. That first meeting begins at 7 PM at the Midwest City Public Library, 8143 E. Reno.

Next week, we have three meetings:

OKC NE -- 10/6/11
Lang Center of Corpus Christi Church, 1010 NE 16th.

OKC NW -- 10/03/11
Rooms A-B, St. Charles Borromeo Church, 5024 N. Grove, Warr Acres.

OKC SW -- 10/04/11
Capital Hill Church of the Nazarene -- 3412 S Shartel

The week after, we head out to Norman and Shawnee, followed by Stillwater, Edmond, and El Reno. You can see the complete schedule at http://www.okie.coop/2011falltour.htm .

Here is our press release about the tour.

A Better Way to Go to Work
In this time of economic uncertainty, central Oklahoma workers need a home-grown local solution to global economic problems. A worker-owned cooperative is a business that is owned, controlled, and managed by its employees. It derives its power from the people who work there, using money as a tool, not the boss. At these how-to-do-it workshops, Oklahomans will learn how to use the worker cooperative form of business structure to --

 Create good jobs for themselves, their families, and their friends,
 Gain job security for the future,
 Drive economic development for their communities,
 Protect their families from economic insecurity and calamities,
 Increase their household financial resilience and sustainability,
 Discover more fun, enjoyable, and profitable ways to work.

The Oklahoma Worker Cooperative Network is a new local organization supporting economic development and job security in Oklahoma by promotion of the worker-owned cooperative structure of business organization. The OWCN has an Advisory Committee, which includes community leaders such as Oklahoma City Councilman Ed Shadid, Oklahoma Senator Andrew Rice, and Dr. Phil Kenkel of OSU. This workshop is one of nine being presented by the OWCN in central Oklahoma

**jpeaceokc** · 10-02-2011, 08:20 AM

More evidence of the worker owned cooperative as a tool of economic development, job creation, and social justice.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/ci_1901...idebayarea.com

**bluedogok** · 10-02-2011, 10:33 AM

There are also other types of co-ops, here in Austin we have a natural foods store that is a co-op (Wheatsville Food Co-op) that has been around a long time and was probably the genesis behind Whole Foods. There is also a microbrewery co-op (Black Star Co-op Pub and Brewery) that seems to be successful. Both memberships are not only open to workers but to the public as well.