
Editorial reviewed/Short paper | Published online: October 2023 |
The problem of social care: A co-operative solution
, Andrew Birchall, Anita Mangan,Mick McKeown, Cilla Ross, and Simon Taylor
Vol 55 No 2, pp. 35-42
How to cite this article: Bird, A., Birchall, A., Mangan, A., McKeown, M., Ross, C. & Taylor, S. (2022). The problem of social care: A co-operative solution. Journal of Co- operative Studies, 55(2), 35-42.
Abstract
This short paper responds to Johnston Birchall’s observations on the future of the co-operative movement in relation to the crisis of social care in the UK. The authors put the case for a union co-operative model that offers a means for forming worker co-operatives for social care inclusive of trade unions and framed around an ethic of care, enhanced worker voice, and wider democratic participation in the sector. More on union co-operatives can be found at
References
Audebrand, L. K. (2017). Expanding the scope of paradox scholarship on social enterprise: The case for (re) introducing worker cooperatives. M@n@gement, 20(4), 368-393.
Barnes, M. (2012). Care in everyday life: An ethic of care in practice. Policy Press.
Barnes, M., Brannelly, T., Ward, L., & Ward, N. (Eds.).(2015). Ethics of care: Critical advances in international perspective. Policy Press.
Barnes, M., Conradi, E., & Vosman, F. (2015). Deliberation and transformation from the ethics of care. Ethics and Social Welfare, 9(2), 109-112.
Berry, D., & Bell, M.P. (2018). Worker cooperatives: Alternative governance for caring and precarious work. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 37(4), 376-391.
Birchall, J. (2022). Co-operatives in the Twenty First Century. Journal of Co‑operative Studies, 55(1),94-100. (Original work published 2000).
Bird, A., Conaty, P., McKeown, M., Mangan, A., Ross, C., & Taylor, S. (2020). Union‑coops: UK - A manifesto for decent work. Union Coops: UK.
Bird, A., Conaty, P., Mangan, A., McKeown, M., Ross, C. & Taylor, S. (2021). Together we will stand: Trade unions, cooperatives and the Preston Model. In J. Manley & P. Whyman (eds.), The Preston Model and community wealth building: Creating a socio-economic democracy for the future (pp. 93‑110). Routledge.
Blakeley, G., & Quilter-Pinners, H. (2019). Who cares? The financialisation of adult social care. IPPR.
Borzaga, C. (2020). Social enterprises and their ecosystems in Europe, (Country report: Italy). European Commission.
Borzaga, C., Salvatori, G., & Bodini, R. (2019). Social and solidarity economy and the future of work. Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Emerging Economies, 5(1), 37-57.
Borzaga C., Bodini R., Carini C., Depedri S., Galera G., & Salvatori, G. (2014). Europe in transition: The role of social cooperatives and social enterprises, (Working Paper n. 69|14). EURICSE.
Burki, T. (2020, May 23). England and Wales see 20,000 excess deaths in care homes, (World Report). The Lancet, 395(10237), 1602.
Calò, F., Teasdale, S., Donaldson, C., Roy, M. J., & Baglioni, S. (2018). Collaborator or competitor: Assessing the evidence supporting the role of social enterprise in health and social care. Public Management Review, 20(12), 1790-1814.
Campopiano, G., & Bassani, G. (2021). Social innovation: Learning from social cooperatives in the Italian context. Journal of Cleaner Production, 291, 125253.
Develtere, P., Leuven, K. U., & Papoutsi, B. G. (2021, June 2-4). Rebuilding and realizing a resilient global society through cooperatives [Paper presentation]. Expert Group Meeting: The role of cooperatives in economic and social development.
Dromey, J., & Hochlaf, D. (2018). Fair care: A workforce strategy for social care. Institute for Public Policy Research.
Dzur, A. W. (2019). Democracy inside: Participatory innovation in unlikely places. Oxford University Press.
Elley-Brown, M. J., & Pringle, J. K. (2021). Sorge, Heideggerian ethic of care: Creating more caring organizations. Journal of Business Ethics, 168(1), 23-35.
Esim, S., & Katajamaki, W. (2017). Rediscovering worker cooperatives in a changing world. IUSLabor, 1,1-8.
Foot, M. (1973). Aneurin Bevan: A biography. Vol. 2 1945-1960. Davis-Poynter.
Harrington, C., Jacobsen, F. F., Panos, J., Pollock, A., Sutaria, S., & Szebehely, M. (2017). Marketization in long-term care: A cross-country comparison of large for-profit nursing home chains. Health Services Insights, 10.
Heery, E., Hann, D., & Nash, D. (2017). The Living Wage campaign in the UK. Employee Relations, 39(6), 800-814.
Howard, N. (2020). A world of care. In M. Parker (Ed.), Life after covid‑19: The other side of crisis (pp. 21- 30). Bristol University Press.
Humphries, R., Thorlby, R., Holder, H., Hall, P., & Charles, A. (2016). Social care for older people: Home truths. The Kings Fund.
International Co-operative Alliance. (2018). Cooperative identity, values and principles.
Jenkins, S., & Chivers, W. (2022). Can cooperatives/employee-owned businesses improve 'bad' jobs? Evaluating job quality in three low-paid sectors. British Journal of Industrial Relations, 60(3), 511-535.
Johnson, M., Rubery, J., & Egan, M. (2021). Raising the bar? The impact of the UNISON ethical care campaign in UK domiciliary care. Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, 27(3), 367-382.
Manthorpe, J. & Iliffe, S. (2021, January 18). Care homes: Averting market failure in a post-covid-19 world. We need public and political consensus about long term options, [Editorial]. The British Medical Journal, 372(118), 1-2.
Moth, R. (2022). Understanding mental distress: knowledge, practice and neoliberal reform in community mental health services. Policy Press.
Pollock, A. (2021, September 14) Multinational care companies are the real winners from Johnson's new tax [Opinion]. The Guardian.
Sandoval, M. (2018). From passionate labour to compassionate work: Cultural co-ops, do what you love and social change. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 21(2), 113-129.
Sevenhuijsen, S. (2003). The place of care: The relevance of the feminist ethic of care for social policy. Feminist Theory, 4(2), 179-197.
Smith, S. J. (2005). States, markets and an ethic of care. Political Geography, 24(1), 1-20.
The Kings Fund (2018, January 4). Delayed transfers of care: a quick guide. The Kings Fund.
Tronto, J. (1998). An Ethic of Care. Generations: Journal of the American 91´ô¸ç on Aging, 22(3), 15-20.
Turnhout, E., Metze, T., Wyborn, C., Klenk, N., & Louder, E. (2020). The politics of co-production: Participation, power, and transformation. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 42, 15-21.
Werner, A. (2021). Living wage implementation in adult social care: Challenges, solutions and benefits (Research report - key findings). Middlesex University London.
Wittenberg, R., Knapp, M., Hu, B., Comas-Herrera, A., King, D., Rehill, A., Shi, C., Banerjee, S., Patel, A., Jagger, C., & Kingston, A. (2019). The costs of dementia in England. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 34(7), 1095-1103.
Wood, H. & Skeggs, B. (2020). Clap for carers? From care gratitude to care justice. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 23(4), 641-647.
Woods, M., Phibbs, S. & Severinsen, C. (2017). 'When morals and markets collide': Challenges to an ethic of care in aged residential care. Ethics and Social Welfare, 11(4), 365-381.