Intersections, Old and New

Trade Unions, Worker Cooperatives and the Climate Crisis

Abstract

Trade unions and worker cooperatives have always intersected. Worker and consumer cooperatives provided invaluable support to the early growth of trade unionism in Europe in the 19^th century. Cooperatives have ebbed and flowed in their prevalence since that time. The current moment is, however, one of proliferation, with cooperatives once again forming innovative and mutually supportive relationships with trade unions. New challenges are driving these developments. The foremost of which is the record levels of carbon emissions fuelling global warming. In this article, it is shown that the intersection of cooperatives and unions can offer a powerful force in this struggle—a force capable of mobilising to defend the climate against unchecked capital. A brief general political history of cooperatives in the West is provided, followed by an appraisal of contemporary cooperative forms in the United States, Australia, and Aotearoa New Zealand.