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Worker and Community Ownership as an Economic Development Strategy: Innovative Rebirth or Tired Retread of a Failed Idea?

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  • Jason S. Spicer

Abstract

A generation ago, American state and local experiments with worker and community ownership appeared unsuccessful. Does their current revival offer anything new to the field of economic development or is this merely a tired retread of a failed idea? Using historical analysis, case studies, and interview data from three U.S. regions, the author analyzes the current range of initiatives that seek to remove impediments, stimulate development, and provide direct technical and financial support to worker and community-owned enterprises. The author also identifies how these efforts differ from those in the past, with respect to scope, scale, and success orientation. Collectively, these differences suggest a focus on engaging with, rather than escaping from, market-based economic development. Key challenges are also identified: popular education, community capacity, competitive pressure, early-stage financing, and managing political content. While too early to assess outcomes, these differences suggest the possibility of more substantial results than in the past.

Suggested Citation

  • Jason S. Spicer, 2020. "Worker and Community Ownership as an Economic Development Strategy: Innovative Rebirth or Tired Retread of a Failed Idea?," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 34(4), pages 325-342, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ecdequ:v:34:y:2020:i:4:p:325-342
    DOI: 10.1177/0891242420941597
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    9. Douglas L. Kruse & Richard B. Freeman & Joseph R. Blasi, 2010. "Shared Capitalism at Work: Employee Ownership, Profit and Gain Sharing, and Broad-based Stock Options," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number krus08-1, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jason Spicer & Michelle Zhong, 2022. "Multiple entrepreneurial ecosystems? Worker cooperative development in Toronto and Montréal," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 54(4), pages 611-633, June.

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