The idea that worker cooperatives are at best diversions from class struggle or, at worst, destined to turn into capitalist enterprises is common among the Marxist left. Such a position, however, is the product of an undialectical reading of Marx's comments on cooperation. A dialectical analysis finds that labor-managed sectors succeed in preserving their democratic, cooperative character to the extent that they are connected to a history of class struggle. This conclusion is reinforced through a comparative review of labor-managed sector history and performance within mediated and unmediated advanced capitalist economies.
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