The Austin Cooperative Business Association announces a big win for cooperatives in Central Texas, as the Austin City Council passes an express directive to the Economic Development Department to pilot a worker cooperative development program in fiscal year 2020. This program will create outreach and education materials, and provide direct technical assistance to groups seeking to form worker owned businesses as well as cooperative conversions, in which an existing business is sold to its workers.
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The specifics of the recommendation include $50,000 for a pilot program to provide training, technical assistance, referrals, and outreach, $20,000 for providing technical assistance to owners and workers when converting businesses to co-ops, and $5,000 for advertising costs to promote succession to a worker cooperative to a wider audience, and assisting the city’s Small business Program with developing an online “How To” guide.
Read the rest at Austin Cooperative Business Association
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