Us and Them

Co-operative forms of enterprise are often held up as a progressive, moderate alternative to the privations of the capitalist market economy. This paper considers the Prince Rupert Fishermen's Co-op and its relations with organized labour in the north of British Columbia. The paper describes a contradiction within the co-op based on the possibilities of social ownership within a market economy. Through a discussion of the escalating labour conflicts between the co-op and its non-member employees the weaknesses of co-operative enterprises are revealed. Resume Les entreprises en forme de cooperative sont souvent considerees comme solutions progressistes et moderees qui peuvent remplacer les entreprises privees d'une economie de marche capitaliste. Cet article presente la Cooperative des pecheurs de Prince Rupert et ses relations avec la main-d'oeuvre organisee au nord de Colombie-Britannique. Il decrit une contradiction qui existe dans cette cooperative basee sur les possibilites de propriete collective au sein d'une economie de marche. Par suite d'une discussion des conflits de travail croissants entre la cooperative et ses employees et employes non membres, les faiblesses des cooperatives en tant qu'entreprises se sont manifestees par une revelation

Sociology · Cooperative Studies and Economics · Political Economy and Marxism · Social Sciences and Governance

• Business First

  Open Access•Constance P Deroche•Anthropology of Work Review•2005

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