Co-operative Workplace Dispute Resolution

Co-operative Workplace Dispute Resolution focuses on dispute resolution strategies at matched pairs of worker co-operatives and conventional businesses in three different industries. In contrast to conventionally organized businesses, co-operatives attempt to evenly distribute power and ownership and encourage worker control through egalitarian ideologies, flattened management structures and greater information sharing. The author’s research identifies clear variations attributable to different organizational forms and demonstrates that worker co-operative members have access to more dispute resolution strategies than their conventionally employed counterparts. A more even distribution of power, as occurs in co-operatives, provides insight into how greater worker involvement and ownership might function in a less 'extreme' and more modest form to the benefit of conventional mainstream business.