Showed this video on co-operatives to my IGCSE Economics (Unit 4 of CIE syllabus) class today and found it most useful in demonstrating the characteristics and examples. Remember the following characteristics about co-operatives:
- share responsibility for the success or failure of the enterprise
- work together
- take decisions together
- share profits (and losses).
- The three most commonly found cooperatives are farming, production and retail.
Advantages
- Limited liability
- Workers in worker co-operatives take business decisions and share profits.
- Members of consumer co-operatives enjoy profit dividends or lower prices
Disadvantages
- Many consumer co-operatives have been forced out of business by larger companies.
- Worker co-operatives may be badly run.