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Heirloom Library
Explore trusted sources on employee ownership and democratic governance. Heirloom explains what each source is useful for, so you can follow a guide or look up exactly what you need.
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Showing 49 of 140 published resources.
Reset search and filtersMondragon Corporation
Mondragon’s official overview of its cooperative principles, including democratic organization, sovereignty of labor, participation in management, and intercooperation.
Co-operatives UK
A Co-operatives UK guide explaining sociocracy for co-ops, including consent decision-making, circle working, double-linking, open elections, benefits, drawbacks, and templates.
Sociocracy For All
A detailed case study of Unicorn Grocery, a worker-owned grocery co-op in Manchester using sociocracy in its governance.
Democracy at Work Institute / Project Equity
A DAWI and Project Equity framework for understanding the local and regional supports that help worker cooperatives grow.
Loomio Cooperative
An open handbook documenting how Loomio runs as a non-hierarchical worker cooperative.
Democracy at Work Institute
A Democracy at Work Institute explainer defining worker cooperatives through shared worker ownership and democratic control.
Sustainable Economies Law Center
A SELC practice guide written for attorneys advising worker cooperative corporations.
University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives
A University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives report summarizing governance structures, practices, and culture among U.S. worker co-ops based on survey data.
U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives / Democracy at Work Institute
A sector report on worker cooperatives and democratic workplaces in the United States based on fiscal year 2024 data.
USDA Rural Development
A USDA guide explaining how to conduct a feasibility study for a cooperative business.
National Center for Employee Ownership
An NCEO guide for companies under about 20 employees that want employee ownership but may not be good ESOP candidates.
Democracy at Work Institute
A report on targeted worker cooperative development strategies drawing lessons from Mondragon, Northern Italy, and U.S. examples.
U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives
A USFWC Co-op Clinic mini guide on the role, composition, and accountability of worker co-op boards.
Project Equity
Project Equity case studies of businesses that converted to worker cooperatives, including examples such as Big Timberworks, Namaste Solar, Pattycake Bakery, and Real Pickles.
Co-operatives UK
A Co-operatives UK guide to semi-autonomous circles, domains, rounds, membership, and linking for cooperative organizations.
U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives
A USFWC collection of short guides and tools on worker co-op fundamentals, including member engagement, boards, structure, decision-making, onboarding, member removal, and meeting templates.
Co-operatives UK
A Co-operatives UK page highlighting co-ops that have implemented sociocracy, including Equal Care Co-operative, Outlandish, Unicorn Grocery, VME, and others.
Democracy at Work Institute
A DAWI-hosted AORTA resource outlining a conflict-resolution process that can be used by cooperatives.
Co-operatives UK
A Co-operatives UK guide to consent-based decision-making, domains, review dates, decision records, and iterative governance.
Canadian Worker Co-operative Federation
A CWCF guide to decision-making in worker co-ops, including member meetings, board roles, management accountability, and the need for clear authority.
Democracy at Work Institute
A DAWI guide to democratic management practices organized around power, information, people, and money, with tools and examples for worker co-ops and democratic workplaces.
Democracy at Work Network
A handbook for creating accountability and evaluation systems in small and medium-sized worker cooperatives.
Co-operatives UK
A Co-operatives UK template page offering practical downloads for co-ops beginning to use sociocratic governance practices.
U.S. Department of Labor
A U.S. Department of Labor resource comparing ESOPs, worker cooperatives, Employee Ownership Trusts, and equity compensation.
Equal Exchange
A real-world example of articles of incorporation and bylaws from Equal Exchange, one of the better-known U.S. worker cooperatives.
The Democracy Collaborative
A Democracy Collaborative report on financing strategies, case studies, and resources for scaling cooperatives and inclusive ownership.
Sustainable Economies Law Center
A SELC article explaining key tradeoffs between forming a worker cooperative as an LLC or as a cooperative corporation.
Democracy at Work Institute
A DAWI guide explaining how governing documents can codify democratic ownership, governance structure, growth, and conflict-resolution pathways.
Sustainable Economies Law Center
A 30-minute SELC teach-in and supporting materials introducing governance, management, board roles, and power distribution in worker cooperatives and worker self-directed nonprofits.
Democracy at Work Institute
A DAWI resource on the capital landscape for worker cooperatives and how finance institutions can support worker ownership.
Sustainable Economies Law Center
A legal guide to converting an existing business to cooperative ownership, including entity formation, governance documents, asset transfer, financing, and transaction steps.
Democracy at Work Institute / South Mountain Company
A practical resource from South Mountain Company with tips for effective meetings and consensus decision-making in worker cooperatives.
Democracy at Work Institute
A DAWI spreadsheet template that helps worker cooperative entrepreneurs make a preliminary financial assessment of a startup or early-stage business.
Democracy at Work Institute
An editable sample bylaws document for worker cooperatives that can help groups avoid starting their governance documents from scratch.
Democracy at Work Institute
A DAWI resource collection focused on scale, impact, cooperative growth, economic recovery, and worker cooperative sector data.
Sociocracy for All
A Sociocracy for All resource explaining why sociocracy can fit cooperative governance and how consent, circles, and peer learning can support co-ops.
Grassroots Economic Organizing
A worker co-op roundtable from the International Co-operative Governance Symposium discussing sociocracy, hierarchy, flat governance, and cooperative practice.
CooperationWorks
A CooperationWorks article arguing that sociocracy can help worker co-ops avoid informal hierarchy, scale beyond consensus, and build transparent governance practices.
Canadian Worker Co-operative Federation
A Canadian Worker Co-operative Federation starting point with links to a handbook and sections on incorporation, decision-making, business planning, and co-op principles.
NCBA CLUSA
A state-by-state cooperative statute library hosted by NCBA CLUSA and curated with USDA Rural Business Cooperative Service.
Cooperative Fund of New England, Project Equity, Democracy at Work Institute
A financing FAQ and case study report for investing in businesses converting to worker ownership.
workers.coop
A worker-co-op-specific code explaining how cooperative principles apply to worker-owned businesses, including governance, membership, work, capital, and participation.
Sustainable Economies Law Center
A legal and practical manual from SELC, EBCLC, and the Green Collar Communities Clinic on starting and operating a worker-owned business.
Project Equity
A Project Equity comparison of ESOPs, worker cooperatives, and Employee Ownership Trusts.
Democracy at Work Institute
A plain-language DAWI overview of what worker cooperatives are, how they differ from other models, and how ownership and voting typically work.
Democracy at Work Institute
A presentation from USFWC and DAWN advisors covering the basics of worker cooperative governance and management.
The Democracy Collaborative / Project Equity
A research report by Hilary Abell on barriers and success factors for scaling worker cooperatives, including cooperative culture, training, management, capital, and governance.
Democracy at Work Institute
A sample employee and worker-owner handbook template for existing worker cooperatives.
CICOPA / CECOP
CICOPA’s international declaration defining worker cooperatives and the core characteristics of democratic worker ownership.