1. Wed, 30/12/15

    Occupy, Resist, Produce – Officine Zero

    The second in a series of short documentaries on the recuperated factories of Europe.

    Officine Zero, former RSI (Rail Service Italia) was dedicated to the maintenance and repair of sleeping cars. When in December 2011 Italian train services decided to stop the night train service and invest in fast track trains, RSI closed. Some 20 workers out of the almost 60 employees strong work force did not accept the closing and took up the struggle. They found support among the activists from the nearby social center, “Strike.” In February 2012 they occupied their work place. Together they started a laboratory on reconversion, organizing public assemblies attended by hundreds of people. read more »

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  2. Wed, 30/12/15

    Occupy, Resist, Produce – VIOME

    The third in a series of short documentaries on the recuperated factories of Europe.

    VIOME is a building materials factory in Thessaloniki, Greece, which was abandoned by its owners at the peak of the Greek crisis, in 2011. Subsequently it was occupied by its workers, and has been producing natural detergents under workers' control since 2013. Despite being an emblematic and inspiring struggle, today VIOME is under imminent threat of eviction. read more »

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  3. Wed, 30/12/15

    Proletarian Power: The Turin Factory Councils 1919-1920

    The Bienno Rosso, the two red years which threatened to overthrow Italian capitalism, represents one of the high points of working class struggle in the history of the world labor movement.

    The Turin Factory Council movement which emerged at the height of the Bienno Rosso, the two red years which threatened to overthrow Italian capitalism, represents one of the high points of working class struggle in the history of the world labor movement. read more »

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  4. Wed, 30/12/15

    When the Workers Become the Owners: Taking the Co-op Movement to the Next Level

    An interview with Esteban Kelly and Melissa Hoover, two prominent figures in the worker-cooperative movement.

    There's a revolution taking place in the US workforce - but you may not have heard about it.

    Around the country, workers are starting businesses that they democratically control and that financially benefit them. These businesses, called worker cooperatives, are owned and governed by the employees. Every worker is a member of the co-op, which gives them one share and one vote in the company's operations. read more »

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  5. Wed, 30/12/15

    A Deeper Look at the Mondragon Principles 3: The Instrumental and Subordinate Nature of Capital

    Worker Co-ops and their Requirements for Capital within Limits

    “We do not aspire to economic development as an end, but as a means.”

    –Don José María Arizmendiarrieta, spiritual founder of Mondragon read more »

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  6. Wed, 30/12/15

    A Deeper Look at the Mondragon Principles 1: Sovereignty of Labor

    Overcoming the Rift Between Worker Coops and the Labor Left

    The Mondragon principle “Sovereignty of Labor” created departure from the cooperative movement. While the Rochdale Pioneers had good intentions, they abandoned worker cooperation in the 1870’s. The Fabian Socialist moved even further from the ideals of Robert Owen declaring consumerism as the lowest common denominator for human relationships eschewing workers as merely another stakeholder group. Even the French cooperativist Charles Gide turned away from worker associations. read more »

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  7. Wed, 30/12/15

    A Deeper Look at the Mondragon Principles 2: Participatory Management

    Needed: Self-Management and Workplace Democracy

    The next principle from Mondragon is that of Participatory Management. This seems like a no-brainer for worker co-operatives. What is the point of going through all the work of setting up a worker co-op if the workers don’t actually have a say in how the place is run? They would be better off in a unionized Employee Stock Ownership Program. read more »

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  8. Wed, 30/12/15

    What’s Next for the World’s Largest Federation of Worker-Owned Co-Ops? A conversation with Mondragon President Josu Ugarte

    Mondragon Corporation, a federation of 103 worker-owned cooperatives based in the Basque Country, aims to be globally competitive while empowering local workers and addressing income inequality.

    In early May, President Barack Obama visited Nike’s headquarters in Oregon to gather support for the T read more »

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  9. Wed, 30/12/15

    Inside America's Largest Worker-Run Business

    Can workplace democracy pave the way to better conditions in low-wage industries? For home care aides, the results of one 30-year experiment are mixed.

    Fifteen years ago, Clara Calvo had just left her husband and her job. Both were abusive in their own ways. Her husband beat her, while her job at a beauty salon required long, unpredictable hours for little pay. read more »

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  10. Wed, 30/12/15

    Why Unions Are Going Into the Co-op Business

    As manufacturing in the United States continues in free fall, the USW aims to use employee-run businesses to create new jobs to replace union work that has gone overseas.

    “Too often we have seen Wall Street hollow out companies by draining their cash and assets and hollow out communities by shedding jobs and shuttering plants,” said United Steelworkers (USW) President Leo Gerard in 2009. “We need a new business model that invests in workers and invests in communities.”

    Gerard was announcing a formal partnership between his 1.2-million-member union and Mondragon, a cluster of cooperatives in the Basque region of Spain. read more »

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