Solidarity cooperatives: The (hidden) origins of communitarian pluralism in the UK social enterprise movement

In: Social enterprise journal, Volume 15, Issue 2, p. 243-263

Abstract

Purpose
This paper aims to re-evaluate social enterprise (SE) history to pinpoint a pluralist turn in communitarian philosophy during the 1970s, which has the potential to transform labour and consumer rights in enterprise development.


Design/methodology/approach
Through a close examination of model rules created by founders of the FairShares Association (FSA), the authors find that the communitarian origins of SE are disturbingly obscured and hidden.


Findings
In studying FSA documents and building a timeline of the development of the FairShares Model (FSM), the authors found links between SE developments in the UK, continental Europe, Asia, North/South America and the development of solidarity cooperatives.


Research limitations/implications
The authors argue that the discovery of a communitarian pluralist turn advances "new cooperativism" by enfranchising both labour and users in industrial relations (IR). Using this insight, they challenge accounts of SE history and argue for more research on SE's potential contribution to radical IR.


Originality/value
The paper highlights the potential of the FSM as a vehicle for catalysing new SE and IR practices that share wealth and power more equitably between social entrepreneurs, workforce members, service/product users and community/social investors.