Labor-Managed Cooperatives and Private Firms in North Central Italy: An Empirical Comparison

The authors analyze the differences between the behavior of private firms and that of producer cooperatives in a matched sample of the two organizational types from the regions of Emilia Romagna and Toscana in North-Central Italy, where producer cooperatives are numerous. Individual firm-level surveys provide new detailed comparative data on key issues such as investment, productivity, wages, employment, and industrial relations. Differences between the two types of firm are found in labor relations, employment, pay, production methods, the relationship to the external market environment, and the level of economic performance. The authors find no significant differences in investment horizons or criteria for finance, despite theoretical assertions to the contrary. The cooperatives apparently have higher productivity, more labor-intensive production methods, lower income differentials, and a more tranquil industrial relations environment than the private firms.