“Cooperate May 7th” A new chapter in the workers' struggle in Villa Constitution?

Abstract

This research analyzes the history of Cooperar 7 de Mayo between 1996 and 2008, a company of former Acindar employees located in the city of Villa Constitución. Cooperar emerged as a result of the struggle of 100 workers to retain their jobs in a context of outsourcing that clearly led to a deterioration of their working conditions. Therefore, in 1996, they organized and, with the support of the UOMVC union, formed an LLC with a cooperative spirit. Later, in 2001, they experienced a crisis of representation due to inefficient decision-making by the managing partners, and they decided to form a cooperative with the goal of achieving greater democratic control and economic participation. Finally, in 2003, the cooperative experienced significant capitalization and corporate growth, which led to an internal division within the cooperative. As a result, between 2006 and 2008, political and economic violence was reported on the part of the Board of Directors, the purpose of which was to purge the cooperative of elements considered problematic and to sow fear among members that they would raise dissent and suffer reprisals.