Co-op News (August 2019)

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of the Channel Islands Co-operative ... Coop Exchange: addressing the issue of capital ISSN 0009-9821 01 9 770009 982010 THIS ISSUE CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT Interview with Claire McCarthy (p24-25); we speak to Andy Burnham about the Greater Manchester Co-operative Commission (p26- 27); Channel Islands Co-op has turned 100 (p46-47); has Desjardins compromised in its push for growth? (p38-39); leadership lessons from Suma (p40-41); George Jacob Holyoake, secularist and co-operator (p29-31) news Issue #7310 AUGUST 2019 Connecting, championing, challenging AUGUST 2019 CO-OP CULTURE What is it – and why does it matter? Plus … 100 years COVER: The co-op movement has a complex culture which is crucial to its development and to the effectiveness of its organisations. We take a look at different aspects, from religion and education to leadership and international unity Features: p28-43 £4.20 www.thenews.coop 22-23 MEET... OLLY YOUNG Director at Chelmsford Star Co-operative 24-25 CLAIRE MCCARTHY Interview with the outgoing general secretary of the Co-op Party 26-27 ANDY BURNHAM We speak to the Greater Manchester mayor about his plans to include co-ops in the new regional economy 28-43 CO-OPERATIVE CULTURE 28 WHAT IS CO-OP CULTURE? There are crucial characteristics which shape a successful co-op 29-31 CO-OPS AND RELIGION From Mondragon to Leeds’ Daily Bread, faith has been a driving factor in co-operation – but for other co-operators like Holyoake, secularism was just as important 32 MARKETING CO-OP CULTURE Midcounties and Openfield share their perspectives at Congress 33 CO-OPS AND YOUTH How can the movement bring young people to co-op culture? 34-35 LESSONS OF THE PAST Co-op culture and the Victorians 36-37 CECOP AT 40 How the European body for industrial and service co-ops found a single voice for a range of national cultures 38-39 PERILS OF GROWTH As Canadian finance giant Desjardins goes for growth, does it risk compromising its co-operative nature? 40-41 LEADERSHIP How can effective leadership stay in line with co-operative culture? Suma and Lincolnshire co-ops share their perspectives at Congress 42-43 MUSSOLINI’S ITALY The fascist dictatorship tried to wipe out he country’s co-ops – but this oppression prompted survivors to develop of a strong postwar movement 44-45 COOP EXCHANGE A new app is being developed to help people invest in co-operatives 46-47 CHANNEL ISLANDS 100 YEARS Celebrating the retail society’s centenary REGULARS 5-13 UK updates 14-20 Global updates 21 Letters 48-49 Reviews 4 | AUGUST 2019
NEWS RETAIL Campaign urges UK government to set the target of one million worker-owners by 2030 A new campaign by Co-operatives UK and the Employee Ownership Association (EOA) is calling on the UK government to invest £2m in its upcoming spending review to support a voluntary expansion of the employee and worker-owned business sectors. Due to be published this autumn, the spending review will cover the 2020-2021 period, setting detailed departmental allocations. Co-operatives UK and EOA believe that increasing employee and worker-ownership can help the government achieve its objectives for a more productive, inclusive and balanced economy, supporting its own aims in the Good Work Plan and playing a key role in the Industrial Strategy. The #1MillionOwners campaign calls for £2.17m to be allocated over the next three years, with an ambition to create one million worker and employee-owners by 2030. Through the scheme, five local enterprise partnerships (LEPs) would work to address the biggest barriers to employee and worker ownership, such as raising awareness, practical understanding and advice among entrepreneurs, business owners, workers and advisers. In Scotland, the government is investing £500,000 through Scottish Enterprise to support employee ownership and tackle these barriers. The campaign highlights how an independent evaluation for Co-operative Development Scotland found a tenfold return on investment in gross value is added for every pound invested in on-the-ground support to grow employee and worker-ownership. The Scottish government aims to increase the number of employee and worker-owned businesses from 100 to 500 by 2030. The campaign suggests the UK government set a similar target. Ed Mayo, secretary general of Co-operatives UK, said: “When it comes to reducing wealth inequality, driving employee engagement and tackling regional resilience, employee and worker ownership offers a proven solution. “The UK’s best employee-owned businesses and leading worker co-ops can be the answer to a more inclusive economy at a time of great economic uncertainty. We’re urging Westminster to match the Scottish government’s ambition for a fivefold increase in the number of employee and worker owned businesses by 2030.” Deb Oxley, chief executive of the EOA, said: “Now is the time for UK government to invest in creating more businesses that have a proven record of accomplishing and sustaining higher productivity, greater economic resilience and having a wider impact on the regions they operate in.” She added: “Not one dissenting voice has followed recent high-profile employee ownership transitions such as Riverford Organic, Aardman Animations and Richer Sounds. In fact, there was unilateral political support as well as a positive endorsement by commentators in tabloids and broadsheets. “We have great examples from across the UK of employee and worker-owned businesses of doing well while doing good – it is very clear the UK would benefit from having more of them.” Also backing the campaign is Julian Richer, founder of Richer Sounds, who recently handed control of the business to its staff by placing 60% of the company into an employee ownership trust (EOT). He said: “To me, the decision to sell the company to my colleagues was an obvious one. Nobody knew my business better than the people in it and we’d created a culture together. “To sell to the highest bidder would have created wealth for one or two people. Instead, using the EOT model, we will sustain the value we create for the individual, the business and the economy for the longer term.” One of the largest worker co-ops in the UK, Suma, is also supporting the campaign. Ross Hodgson, Suma member said: “Worker ownership has been the key to our success over the last 40 years. “All our members are paid the same and are given an equal say in how the business is run, with each carrying out a range of jobs across our co-op. We support the campaign to create and support more worker-owners and urge the government to commit funding to grow the sector.” AUGUST 2019 | 5
Page 1 and 2: AUGUST 2019 CO-OP CULTURE What is i
Page 3: Why is co-operative culture importa
Page 7 and 8: RETAIL GMB union slams John Lewis t
Page 9 and 10: CO-OP GROUP Co-op Food is a top sup
Page 11 and 12: DEVELOPMENT EU puts £3m into Welsh
Page 13 and 14: OBITUARY Radical Routes loses two o
Page 15 and 16: REI enters the newspaper trade to s
Page 17 and 18: SWEDEN New governance code for co-o
Page 19 and 20: USA A Green New Deal ‘can help el
Page 21 and 22: YOUR VIEWS DEFENCE OF CLAIRE MCCART
Page 23 and 24: 01 Issue #7288 OCT WHAT WHAT WILL C
Page 25 and 26: What would you say have been the Pa
Page 27 and 28: Is there a need to redefine afforda
Page 29 and 30: CO-OP CULTURE & RELIGION BY ANCa VO
Page 31 and 32: prayers most mornings before the st
Page 33 and 34: TEACHING YOUNG PEOPLE ABOUT CO-OPER
Page 35 and 36: directions. I thought: ʻI’ve got
Page 37 and 38: In the mid 1990s Italian social co-
Page 39 and 40: The paper also highlights that Desj
Page 41 and 42: us and how we go about delivering o
Page 43 and 44: Legacoop to serve the socialist and
Page 45 and 46: shift the initial losses from worke
Page 47 and 48: As part of its year-long centenary
Page 49 and 50: Ted Howard: Architect of the Clevel
Page 51 and 52: The Fall of the Ethical Bank: how a

Co-op News (August 2019)

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