Cooperative Workshops for the Black Community

Think Outside the Boss provides community members an introduction into the nuts and bolts of starting and running a cooperatively owned business. We go over legal issues in an accessible way to help you understand the relationships between cooperatives, employment, and community wealth-building.

In collaboration with the Repaired Nations and Cooperation Richmond, we are providing regular teach-ins that go through our legal guide for starting and operating worker cooperatives, Think Outside the Boss! 

We'll be presenting sections of Think Outside the Boss over multiple sessions over the next few months. Our second teach-in will cover:

• How does employment law change the way worker coop members work together?

• What does it mean for worker owners to have an employee?

• In a worker cooperative, should members be treated as employees or owners?

• What do worker owners need to know to protect themselves, other members, and marginalized communities?

If you are an African American entrepreneur starting a business, an existing business owner thinking about succession plans and you have Black workers, or an existing worker coop with black worker-members looking for a refresher, this training is for you! >>> RSVP BELOW!

Food and drinks provided!

Workshop Session 2 will cover:

• How do you spread ownership and control across a group of people?

• What are some models of participatory management and democratic governance?

• How does employment laws effect worker coops?

Workshop Session 3 will cover:

• How do you raise money for a cooperative?

• What are the tax and accounting issues in a cooperative?

Attorneys, artists, law students, and experienced cooperative professionals will give short presentations on legal issues, governance structures, financing, cooperative conversion, and more! At the event, we will have bound copies of the Think Outside the Boss manual for paying attendees! You can also download it for free prior to the event here. 

This event is being sponsored by the San Francisco Foundation, Cooperation Richmond and Repaired Nations.

Thank you!