Cooperatives: The Real Employee-Owned Firms?

2022-05-06T09:00:00-04:00

In a follow-up to our January 2022 feature on employee-owned architecture firms, we question if the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) models which represent the majority of employee-owned architecture firms adequately fulfill a growing worker-led clamor for reform within the profession. For organizations such as the Architecture Lobby, and its founding member Peggy Deamer, meaningful worker ownership of an architectural firm goes far beyond the ESOP model of stock and retirement plans, and instead requires a fundamental rethink, or even abolition, of the employer-employee dynamic.

A Guide to Employee-Owned Architecture Firms, by Those Who Have Made the Change

2022-01-10T12:09:00-05:00

Throughout 2020 and 2021, the world of work has been subject to a relentless evaluation, triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Conversations around remote working, asynchronous office hours, and workers’ wages have gained added agency, as almost all economic sectors seek to balance health and safety with turnover and productivity. Stepping back from specific employment topics such as these, COVID-19 has also caused a more fundamental re-evaluation of how work shapes our lives. A study earlier this year found that 66% of unemployed Americans were considering changing their occupation, dwarfing levels seen during the 2008 recession, while research by McKinsey found similar metrics even among those still in employment.

Within this context, it is perhaps no surprise that the topic of employee ownership of businesses has gathered pace. In a time where many are critically reflecting on how meaningful or fulfilling their core occupations are, the idea of employment generating results for the...

Archinect - Features

Cooperatives: The Real Employee-Owned Firms?

A Guide to Employee-Owned Architecture Firms, by Those Who Have Made the Change