THE UK WORKER CO-OPERATIVE MOVEMENT IN 1988

Abstract: This short paper reports on the results of the 1988 Survey of Worker Co-operatives, which was carried out as part of a wider enquiry into the economic performance of the British co-operative sector.
Based on an interim analysis of survey data it is argued that the co-operative sector has reached a degree of equilibrium in terms of the growth in numbers and employment. Regional and industrial distributions have shown some degree of realignment in the period 1986/88 and this may be a reflection of certain structural and environmental factors. Not least of these is the relative strength of the service economy in the UK and the decline in the role and extent of local Co-operative Development Agencies.