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There's a really inspiring federation of 40-ish tech worker co-ops in Argentina called FACTTIC[1], who have been developing a neat process called FIT[2] by whic

by patcon 7y ago

There's a really inspiring federation of 40-ish tech worker co-ops in Argentina called FACTTIC[1], who have been developing a neat process called FIT[2] by which they share work amongst themselves via regular check-in calls. It's almost like they're part of a big meta-company together that shared opportunities based on their needs (e.g., who needs the money the most, etc.) Here's a video of a presentation they gave on the format: https://agaric.coop/blog/show-and-tell-agaric-sharing-work-other-coops https://agaric.coop/blog/show-and-tell-agaric-sharing-work-o... The most exciting part is that they're now trying to share the model with tech worker co-ops abroad, and maybe even figure out how to build similar trust between international co-ops. Disclaimer: I'm a member of a new tech worker co-op in Toronto, Canada (Hypha[3]), and have a big crush on FACTTIC. [1]: https://facttic.org.ar/ https://facttic.org.ar/ [2]: https://facttic.org.ar/fit/ https://facttic.org.ar/fit/ [3]: https://hypha.coop https://hypha.coop

iagovar 7y ago
Could coops constitute, at least, a partial solution to ageism? Many of the US commenters have expressed their frustration and experiences in this regard, perhaps cooperatives can serve as a good quality alternative. Perhaps the problem is that it seems a model that fits more with consulting than with a product company.
- patcon 7y ago
  Hm. Interesting. I mean, I'm biased, but I believe it could. An analogy I'm trying with friends is that a worker co-op is less like a company that does a specific thing, and more like a ship that sails where it's members wish it to go. It might present as a solid "WE ARE A COMPANY THAT DOES X", but it only does that so long as that serves its members. If the destination doesn't serve the crew, they create a new destination, they don't necessarily ditch crew members. Also, the crew doesn't worry about the ship sailing away without them :)
rolleiflex 7y ago
We've been working with Hypha for the past few months mentioned above and it's been a good experience. My understanding is they're pretty selective about what sort of projects they take, but it's worth a shot.

by patcon 7y ago

iagovar 7y ago

Could coops constitute, at least, a partial solution to ageism? Many of the US commenters have expressed their frustration and experiences in this regard, perhaps cooperatives can serve as a good quality alternative. Perhaps the problem is that it seems a model that fits more with consulting than with a product company.

patcon 7y ago
Hm. Interesting. I mean, I'm biased, but I believe it could. An analogy I'm trying with friends is that a worker co-op is less like a company that does a specific thing, and more like a ship that sails where it's members wish it to go. It might present as a solid "WE ARE A COMPANY THAT DOES X", but it only does that so long as that serves its members. If the destination doesn't serve the crew, they create a new destination, they don't necessarily ditch crew members. Also, the crew doesn't worry about the ship sailing away without them :)

rolleiflex 7y ago

We've been working with Hypha for the past few months mentioned above and it's been a good experience. My understanding is they're pretty selective about what sort of projects they take, but it's worth a shot.