WORKER OWNERSHIP IN THE UK 1992 AND FINANCIAL-SUPPORT STRATEGIES FOR THE COOPERATIVE MOVEMENT

By early 1992 it was unclear whether the 'new wave' of worker co-opera tives in the UK was essentially over or whether there was continued, t hough less spectacular, growth. Certainly, the more general interest i n worker ownership indicated some potential as well as the need for ne w thinking in terms of financial and other support offered within the UK co-operative movement. This paper gives up-to-date estimates of the size and characteristics of the UK worker co-operative movement, conc entrating especially on the changing capital structure of new worker c o-operatives. It then gives extracts from a report (Thomas et al., 199 2) on consultations undertaken within the movement on possibilities, p roblems and ideas for the financial support of worker co-operatives, c oncluding with a discussion of alternative future strategies.