Un-Cooperative: Why Worker Co-Ops Don’t Work in America.
Unf*cking The Republic
UNFTR Media
4.9 • 683 Ratings
🗓️ 19 October 2024
⏱️ 40 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Worker cooperatives are often viewed as part of the solution to beating back capitalism. Yet there are more than 33 million small businesses in the U.S. and less than a thousand worker co-operatives. This week’s episode looks at the different co-op models and the barriers to the growth and success of worker cooperatives in the U.S. as opposed to Europe. We take a look at iconic cooperatives such as the Mondragon Corporation in Spain to the Park Slope Food Co-Op in Brooklyn, NY and explain how everyone can easily support worker co-ops this election day.
Chapters
Intro: 00:00:03
Chapter One: Doing the Work. 00:03:52
Chapter Two: Mondragon. 00:11:27
Chapter Three: Cooperatives Models. 00:19:18
Chapter Four: The Food Dude Retires. 00:27:54
Chapter Five: Barriers and Clues. 00:31:20
Bring it home, Max. 00:35:31
Outro: 00:39:29
Resources
Expert Market: The Most Productive Countries in 2024
USDA: More than just a co-op: How Cooperatives Strengthen Economic Power
National Council of Farmer Cooperatives
EOS Data Analytics: Agricultural Cooperatives: Find The Top Co-Ops In The US
Ocean Spray: About Us
NCBA CLUSA: Healthcare Co-ops
NCUA Quarterly Credit Union Data Summary 2024 Q1
U.S. Small Business Administration: Office of Advocacy: Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business, 2023
Co-op News: Worker co-op sector continues to grow in the USA
Co-opLaw.org: Subchapter T and How Money Flows Through a Cooperative
H.R.7721 - 118th Congress (2023-2024): National Worker Cooperative Development and Support Act
The New York Times: Founder of the Park Slope Food Coop in Brooklyn to Retire After 50 Years
Reuters: Personal Finance: Bank Transfer Day saw 600,000 switch
Bob’s Red Mill: Proudly Employee Owned
Democracy at Work (d@w): About Co-ops
U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives: Sen. Bernie Sander’s Address at The Worker Co-op Conference
U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives: Member Directory
The New Yorker: How Mondragon Became the World’s Largest Co-Op
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is the story of a political pundit who looked at the world around him and just said, fuck it. |
| 0:07.8 | Gives the middle finger to authority and says, kiss my ass. |
| 0:11.7 | But instead of a revolution, he started a podcast. |
| 0:15.5 | Just what the world be. |
| 0:17.6 | Who started a podcast? |
| 0:19.1 | Another basic white guy who started a podcast. |
| 0:22.6 | But it's fun because he curses all through the podcast. |
| 0:26.6 | I'm fucking the republic. |
| 0:28.6 | We're gonna fucking podcast. |
| 0:30.6 | Come out of bed and I stumbled to the kitchen. |
| 0:32.6 | Pour myself a cup of ambition and yawn and stretch and try to come to life. |
| 0:40.3 | Jump in the shower and the blood starts pumping out on the streets, the traffic starts jumping with folks like me on the job for nine to five. |
| 0:50.0 | You know, I've often been accused of burying the lead. |
| 0:54.3 | Are you non-journalist types? that means he struggles to get to the point. |
| 0:57.7 | So here you go. |
| 0:59.0 | Worker cooperatives are seen as the answer to capitalism because they democratize work, |
| 1:04.2 | limit hierarchical structures, and provide meaningful employment to workers. |
| 1:08.7 | All right, cool. We're done here? |
| 1:10.0 | Not quite. |
| 1:15.9 | They're also rare and insignificant, especially in the United States, and are thus not a viable solution to fixing capitalism. |
| 1:19.4 | Okay, I did not see that coming. |
| 1:22.0 | One of the most prominent faces behind the promotion of worker cooperatives is Professor |
... |
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