[socialismisok]

I'm a strong believer in workers cooperatives and democratic organization. Usually, people don't want to run their livelihood into the ground, but sometimes they make errors. (Just like executives, if Amazon games and stadia are any indication.)

[megaman821]

People are absolutely free to do those things right now. There are tens of millions of people with those sentiments. Why don't we see more attempted co-ops?

[socialismisok]

So, we have some giant coops out there. Some making billions in revenue.

But in the US it's really not well supported. If you want to found an LLC you click a few buttons on a form online and talk to any lawyer.

If you want to found a co-op, you generally have to file the paperwork in person or via the mail. No one in the municipal government will help, because they don't know anything except LLCs. You'll need to find a lawyer who can draft not only the articles of incorporation, but also can advise on the issuing of shares, democratic operation, and how new members can join.

Because profits are controlled by the workers, capitalistic investors won't know what to do with you, so you'll need to put in extra effort to find investors who are willing to be paid but not be made owners (or not more than any workers).

It's a high, high initial cost. But once it's going it can be incredibly self sustaining. Every dollar of profit ends up back in the pockets of the people working there, equally. Or they can collectively choose to use that profit to expand.

[megaman821]

Thanks for the thoughtful response. Sometimes the lack of cooperatives is framed as some sort of Capitalist conspiracy against them. It is much more tractable to point out friction in the system that make starting co-ops hard and then find solutions to solve those over time.

[socialismisok]

Yeah, I don't think it's particularly intentional, but it is systemic. And self perpetuating - there are few co-ops, so investing in making more is a low priority.

[michalf6]

I like the idea in principle, but I can't imagine a situation where a worker cooperative would vote in favor of a risky, but necessary pivot / layoff / long-term investment. Sounds like a recipe for killing intra-company innovation.

[socialismisok]

Right, the co-op solution is not to fire members, but split the burden of lean times across everyone. I don't think I've ever seen a CEO say, "I'll forgo my income this year to ensure we can keep the people here employed".