Langmead, Kiri, Powell, Owen ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6229-9912 and Wilson, Matthew (2025) From prefiguration to organization: Tracing the evolution of the UK worker cooperative movement. In: ICA CCR Europe 2025, 12-13 June 2025, Helsinki. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Cooperation among cooperatives

From prefiguration to organisation: Tracing the evolution of the UK worker cooperative movement (2011-2024)

Dr Kiri Langmead, Edinburgh Napier University

k.langmead@napier.ac.uk

Dr Owen Powell, York St John University

o.powell@yorksj.ac.uk

Dr Matthew Wilson, Swansea University

matthew.wilson@swansea.ac.uk

Interest in alternative forms of organising has been growing steadily within CMS and other disciplines for at least the last decade, with a considerable amount of literature exploring worker cooperatives as an inspiring, if often imperfect model, of how we might organise differently (Cheney et al., 2014; Kokkinidis, 2015; Langmead, 2016; Powell, 2021). Some of this work has examined how cooperatives are connected to various forms of political activism (Esper et al., 2017; Leca & Barin Cruz, 2021) but the vast majority of cooperative scholarship examines ‘‘co-operatives’, rather than ‘co-operative movements’’ (Develtere, 1992, p. 22); no sustained body of work examines cooperativism from a movement perspective (Diamantopoulos, 2012; Williams, 2007). In this paper, we address this gap by exploring, and problematising, the emergence and formalisation of a worker cooperative movement in the UK.

Employing a conceptual and empirical approach, we draw on ongoing ethnographic action research tracking the emergence and development of workers.coop; a worker cooperative Federation, also known as ‘the Fed’. Utilising field notes, semi-structured interviews, and internal reports, we explore the meeting of prefigurative momentum and emergent structuration. About the former, we argue that the emergence of 'spaces of possibility' (Cornwell, 2012) such as the Worker Co-op Weekend (WCW) and Solidarity Fund (SF) created a fertile ground for a new kind of movement. These spaces, driven by a small but dedicated group of individuals, combined with a growing frustration with Co-ops UK and a related desire to create something more closely aligned with the values and practices of worker cooperatives, to generate the momentum needed for creating workers.coop.

Cooperators involved from the Fed’s conception expressed a clear intention to create aimed to establish a decentralised movement rather than a traditional institution, combining the credibility of organisations like Co-ops UK with a fluid, movement-based structure. However, this ambition created challenges as it sought to address diverse needs simultaneously. A persistent tension emerged between discussion and action: while some criticised endless conversations without tangible results, these discussions were vital for building solidarity and shared understanding. This duality pulls the Fed towards being a political or social movement while recognising the necessity of structured actions to support worker cooperatives, requiring funding and organisation akin to service institutions like Co-ops UK. Further tensions have arisen between grassroots organising and the need for paid staff, legal board requirements versus decentralisation goals, and balancing external connections with serving members. Limited capacity exacerbates these tensions, as prefigurative energy is consumed by bureaucratic tasks. These challenges underscore the difficulty of sustaining a movement while developing an organisation.

This paper builds on the extant literature regarding cooperatives, social movements, and prefiguration. In doing so it contributes to both research and practice by examining the drivers that push people to develop a movement, exploring cooperatives as a social movement, and investigating the process of institutionalisation. It offers a conceptual and empirical exploration of the manifestation of 'a movement' as 'an organisation', bridging the gap between social movement studies and cooperative scholarship. By doing so, we aim to shed light on the complex dynamics of prefigurative politics and social movements in the cooperative sector and beyond.

References

Cheney, G., Santa Cruz, I., Peredo, A. M., & Nazareno, E. (2014). Worker cooperatives as an organizational alternative: Challenges, achievements and promise in business governance and ownership. Organization, 21(5), 591–603. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508414539784

Cornwell, J. (2012). Worker Co-operatives and Spaces of Possibility: An Investigation of Subject Space at Collective Copies. Antipode, 44(3), 725–744. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8330.2011.00939.x

Develtere, P. (1992). Co-operatives and Development. Occasional Paper Series.

Diamantopoulos, M. (2012). Breaking out of Cooperation’s Iron Cage: From Movement Degeneration to Building a Developmental Movement. Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, 83(2), 199–214. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8292.2012.00461.x

Esper, S. C., Cabantous, L., Barin-Cruz, L., & Gond, J.-P. (2017). Supporting alternative organizations? Exploring scholars’ involvement in the performativity of worker-recuperated enterprises. Organization, 24(5), 671–699. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508417713218

Kokkinidis, G. (2015). Spaces of possibilities: Workers’ self-management in Greece. Organization, 22(6), 847–871. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508414521098

Langmead, K. (2016). Challenging the Degeneration Thesis: The Role of Democracy in Worker Cooperatives? Handbook of Qualitative Research Methods in Entrepreneurship, 5(1), 79–98.

Leca, B., & Barin Cruz, L. (2021). Enabling critical performativity: The role of institutional context and critical performative work. Organization, 28(6), 903–929. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508421995759

Powell, O. H. J. (2021). Creaking, Slipping, and the Goldilocks Zone: Cultivating Relevance in Established and Scaled Worker Cooperatives [Bangor University]. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.12466.79047

Williams, R. C. (2007). The Cooperative Movement: Globalization from Below. Routledge.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Status:	Unpublished
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races J Political Science > JA Political science (General)
School/Department:	York Business School
URI:	https://ray.yorksj.ac.uk/id/eprint/12424

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