Worker Cooperative Startup Guides

http://www.american.coop/startup

There are several written guides for starting worker cooperatives, and many more for starting cooperatives in general that include sections on worker cooperatives. Having a good organizer or consultant, or mentor, surely makes any of the guides more useful. A few examples are:

* Steps to Starting a Worker Cooperative by Gary Hansen, E. Kim Coontz, and Audrey Malan (1997)
* In Good Company: the Guide to Cooperative Employee Ownership, a Worker Cooperative Toolbox by various authors and the Northcountry Cooperative Development Foundation (2006)
* Starting a Worker Co-op: A Canadian Handbook produced by the Canadian Worker Co-op Federation (2009)
* A Technology Freelancer's Guide to Starting a Worker Cooperative by Jim Johnson, Brent Emerson, et al (2009)
* Co-op 101: A Guide to Starting a Cooperative from the Cooperative Development Institute (2010)
* Putting Democracy to Work by Frank T. Adams and Gary Hansen (1987)
* Starting a worker owned cooperative for home care workers by Margaret Bau (2008?)

More at the link --

US Federation of Worker Cooperatives
http://www.usworker.coop/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/USFWC/120055584708104

There are also several University departments in several states that can help, even if you aren't in the same state. Here's one:
University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives
http://www.uwcc.wisc.edu/

Finally, depending on where you live, you might find more local groups to help. One example in the Madison, WI area is http://madworc.org/ . Check the links above and/or contact them to find out if they can help you with that.

There is LOT of hands-on knowledge out there to help people get started. It's just a matter of finding it.

whoops, repeated myself...

worker owned cooperatives are one good solution... must be encouraged