World Declaration on Worker Co‑operatives
The International Co‑operative Alliance (ICA) approved a World Declaration on Worker Co‑operatives in September 2005. The declaration was drafted by the International Organisation of Industrial, Artisanal and Service Producers' Co‑operatives (CICOPA). The intention was to set a standard for worker co‑operatives that can be used as an international yardstick to define what is or is not a co‑operative.
Workers can be exploited by so-called co‑operatives in every country in the world. Just because an organisation is called a co‑operative does not necessarily make it one. To be a true worker co‑operative an organisation must comply with this declaration.
The co‑operative has been defined as "An autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically controlled enterprise."
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They operate according to seven co‑operative principles 1. Voluntary and open membership 2. Democratic member control 3. Member economic participation 4. Autonomy and independence 5. Education, training and information 6. Co‑operation among co‑operatives 7. Concern for community |
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They share common values
- Self-help
- Self-responsibility
- Democracy
- Equality
- Equity
- Solidarity
- Honesty
- Openness
- Social responsibility and caring for others
Worker co‑operatives also have the following basic criteria
1. They are businesses that generate wealth to fulfil their principle objectives.
- To create and maintain sustainable jobs
- To improve the quality of life of the members
- To allow democratic self-management by members
- To allow all workers to work with dignity
- To promote community and local development
2. The membership of a worker co‑operative is free and voluntary, but is governed by the number of sustainable jobs the business can support.
3. Whilst not all workers have to become members of the co‑operative, the majority should be members. And, although some non-workers may be permitted to be members of the co‑operative, in a worker co‑operative the majority of the members ought to be workers.
4. Members of a co‑operative have a different working relationship with the co‑operative than either workers in a conventionally managed business or the self-employed contractor. But, note, this relationship is not recognised by UK employment legislation.
5. The internal regulation of a worker co‑operative is determined by procedures that are agreed democratically by the members.
6. The worker co‑operative must be autonomous and independent. A co‑operative is obviously subject to UK law and regulation, but must not be subordinate to a third party in any aspect of their management, trade, employment, and ownership of the means of production. Further to that, a co‑operative which is set up expressly to hive off an unprofitable branch of another business, or to provide labour for another business, is not a co‑operative under the terms of this declaration.
Internal rules
A worker co‑operative must operate according to the following internal rules:
- There should be an equitable pay structure for members. This can reflect differences in function, responsibility and productivity but should strive to minimise the difference between the higher and lower wage.
- The co‑operative should have reserves and funds that are held in common or otherwise indivisible, and should aim to grow these reserves for the good of the business.
- The equipment, technical and workplace facilities and organisation provided by the co‑operative should be such as to allow the business to be efficient in every way.
- The co‑operative must have terms and conditions of employment that comply with UK law and suggested best practice, but should always strive to do better than the minimum.
- All the management and governance structures of the co‑operative should be Democratic, and all decisions must be made democratically, or with a clear line of responsibility to the democratic governance of the members.
- There must be a continuous and permanent system of training and development for members, to enable them to acquire the skills and knowledge to better themselves and the co‑operative.
- The co‑operative should aim to improve not only the conditions of its workers and their dependents but also to help develop a sustainable community.
- The co‑operative must not act just as a provider of labour for another enterprise, or in any way be used to drive down terms and conditions of a workforce. The co‑operative must be an independent and viable business in its own right.