Category Archives: CWOP

CWOP, Home

Comparative Studies in Cooperative Economies – EU and USA

By Rebecca Lurie

María Pilar Alguacil Marí, Professor of Financial and Tax Law at the University of Valencia, recently spent time at the Murphy Institute for Labor and Urban Studies/CUNY, where she has carried out various academic activities and taught two seminars.

The first seminar, “Academic Study of Cooperative Economics,” was held on April 2nd and dealt with the different methodological concepts around social economy and cooperatives, such as the nonprofit, or “third sector” approaches, as well as other emerging concepts: social enterprises, collaborative economy, and more. The relevance that these subjects have in the university studies in Spain and Europe was also explored. The seminar ended with a debate among the attendees, who described the situation around cooperative economic education at CUNY, and expressed the need to increase university training in cooperatives. Continue reading Comparative Studies in Cooperative Economies – EU and USA →

CWOP

Union Coop Council Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary

In 2007, the UnionCo-ops Committee was conceptualized at the Eastern Conference for Workplace Democracy (ECWD) in Asheville, North Carolina where Lynn Williams (USW) was keynote speaker. The council then became part of the U.S. Federation of Worker Co-ops and has met monthly since, helping building local and national connections between worker co-ops and labor unions.

Watch this 8 minute videos about Union Co-ops and the council’s 10th Anniversary:

See the full video playlist here.

Individual Videos:

  1. Full Version (35 mins)
  2. Anniversary Video (8 minute, fully captioned)
  3. Video Specific to Union Co-op Council (2:30)
  4. Video Union Co-ops in general (6 mins)
CWOP, Home

Worker Cooperative Business Development Initiative Marks 3rd Anniversary

The Murphy Institute is proud to have been affiliated with the great work of the cooperative network of NYC. With the support of the NY City Council, the City’s Small Business Services and the Worker Cooperative Business Development Initiative (WCBDI) we celebrate over 180 business entities helped through this initiative. With 13 local community based or business development organizations giving services, the Murphy Institute has become a partner where training is hosted and meetings are held.

Read the third annual report here.

CWOP, Home, Labor Studies, Urban Studies

TWU Proposes School Bus Coop

School bus maintenance and driving has long been a tricky business in New York City. In the face of mounting maintenance costs, excessive emissions and flatlining wages, the Transit Workers Union (TWU) has proposed a novel — and potentially transformative — solution for the city’s school buses.

This week, TWU international president John Samuelsen and Manhattan New York City Council member Daniel Garodnick outlined the plan in the New York Daily News:

Here’s our plan. Let’s establish a unionized, worker-owned cooperative to transport students in non-polluting (and air-conditioned) electric school buses. For the pilot, we envision the worker cooperative entering into a contract with the Board of Education to provide service on approximately 15 existing routes that are not permanently assigned to any private company. Continue reading TWU Proposes School Bus Coop →

CWOP, Home, Urban Studies

With Help from JSMI, NYC Releases Worker Coop Resource Guide

From the Worker Cooperative Resource Guide for Skills and Services New York City, Summer 2017:

New York City is seeing a surge of interest in cooperative businesses. It is no wonder. The call for justice will always increase as people experience the rise of injustice. Businesses that are good for the workers and good for communities are able to answer this fundamental clamor for equality.

The New York City Council has made a significant investment into cooperative businesses over the last three years. During this time a network has matured that offers an array of strategies and services, from education and training programs to the technical assistance of other cooperators, cooperative business developers, lenders and lawyers. Business owners, entrepreneurs, urban planners, unionists, community activists, job seekers each can find support for expanding their missions through the cooperative business skills that can be accessed through these pages. Continue reading With Help from JSMI, NYC Releases Worker Coop Resource Guide →

CWOP, Home, Labor Studies

Event: Renewing the Alliance: Unions and Co-ops Fight for Worker Power (6/9)

Friday, June 9, 2017   *   1pm to 5pm

Fordham Law School at Lincoln Center  

150 West 62nd Street   *   New York City 

**FREE** Register at http://bit.ly/2qczTH3       

Directions: http://bit.ly/2rL7zNs

Under fierce attack from the corporate sector, labor unions are exploring worker co-ops as a way to organize new members, save members’ jobs, create new jobs, and build community alliances. Presenters from NYC, Cincinnati and beyond will share their unions’ experiences with these experiments. Through panels, small group discussions and networking opportunities participants will explore how the co-op business model can help to strengthen and expand our unions.

Speakers include:

  • Ellen Vera – National Manufacturing Organizing Coordinator, IUE-CWA; cofounder, Cincinnati Union Co-op Initiative
  • Mary Hoyer – cochair, UnionCo-ops Council of US Federation of Worker Co-ops
  • Carmen Huertas-Noble – director, CUNY Law School Community & Economic Development Clinic, legal expert on unionized worker co-ops
  • Keith Joseph – 1199SEIU rep for Cooperative Home Care Associates, the US’s largest worker coop
  • David Hammer – ICA Group, consultants to unions on business conversions
  • Brendan Martin, director, The Working World, which supported the launch of New Era Windows in Chicago
  • Arturo Archila – United Steel Workers NYC, helped launch a unionized co-op
  • Roger Green, director, Bunche-DuBois Center for Public Policy Research, Medgar Evers College

Sponsors: UnionCo-ops Council of US Federation of Worker Coops, Murphy Institute for Worker Education & Labor Studies-CUNY, NYC Network of Worker Cooperatives, FPWA, 1Worker1Vote.org

Check out the full conference registration for the  Eastern Conference for Workplace Democracy! June 9-11