Evergreen Cooperatives

The Evergreen Cooperatives are a network of worker cooperatives in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.

History

In 1967, the Congress of Racial Equality started to organise worker cooperatives and community owned businesses. Later, in the nearby town of Youngstown in 1977, workers and the city attempted to buy a steel mill after it shut down to stop job losses, but failed, although it gave rise to the idea of workers' control in the area. In 2008, the 'Evergreen Initiative was created by the local government, charities and student groups at local universities to start worker cooperatives. The cooperative laundry was the first in 2008, cooperative solar was second in 2009 and cooperative greenhouse was third in 2012.

Co-operatives

Evergreen Cooperative Laundry

Evergreen Cooperative Laundry (ECL) is an industrial laundry serving local hospitals, hotels and other institutions. It operates at the capacity of 10 million pounds of sheets and towels per year, which represents 4% of the local market. It saves 35% of energy by warming up the clean water with heat from the used water and eliminates hazardous waste by using EPA-approved chemicals. It has 50 workers that are trained upon hiring, and they are paid $8 an hour for the first six months, while they are on a trial period. After that, they are considered for the membership in the co-operative by the peers’ voting. If they are admitted, the salary grows to $10.50 an hour, with 50 cents collected towards the ownership share. After seven years working in the laundry, the individual’s share will be equal to $65,000.

Ohio Cooperative Solar

Ohio Cooperative Solar (OCS) is a solar power and insulation installation company, aiming to expand renewable energy and build passive heating and cooling system for buildings across the city. It provides work for 20 people who came from low-income neighbourhoods.

Green City Growers Cooperative

Green City Growers Cooperative (GCGC) is a (21,000 m²) greenhouse, a packing building, offices and advanced energy facilities. They grow 5-6 million heads of lettuce a year (with another 300,000 pounds of herbs) all year round, supplying local shops with fresh produce and employing 40 workers. A quicker growth cycle has been achieved by hydroponics, i. e. floating the produce on shallow pools of nutrient-enriched water. By carefully controlling the environment and using grow lights in winter, a consistent crop is maintained throughout the twelve month cycle.

Neighborhood Voice

The Greater University Circle Neighborhood Voice is a free, student-owned and student-run newspaper and online news source covering worker co-op activity in Cleveland and other issues of concern to residents of the Buckeye-Shaker, Central, East Cleveland, Fairfax, Glenville, Hough, Little Ital, and University Circle neighborhoods.

References

Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evergreen_Cooperatives