Are there different kinds of cooperatives?
Are worker cooperatives a new form of cooperative?
Is there a relationship between worker cooperatives and the Union movement?
How do worker cooperatives get started?
How do worker cooperatives get their financing?
If the cooperative fails financially, are the workers personally responsible for it's debts?
There are at least three sets of circumstances looked upon as favorable for the establishment of worker cooperatives - start-ups, conversions and plant closings.
A. A start-up is a business situation where a group of workers decide to start a business together.
B. A conversion is one in which the owner of a healthy company decides to sell the business to the workers.
C. Plant closings refer to the situation where a conglomerate has closed a viable company for reasons other than financial potential.