Community Wealth Building meets the power of trade unionism
By Matthew Brown
April 9, 2025
A fairer economic system, where working people share more of the wealth they produce, is one of the main purposes of the trade union movement. Similarly, Community Wealth Building (CWB) desires to democratize and pre-distribute wealth so communities control their economic futures.
Just one decade ago, Community Wealth Building was on the fringes of mainstream economic thought. But now, a burgeoning interest offers real hope for a different kind of economy. And trade unions are becoming key players in the movement.
In Britain, a democratic economy is something that unions have long been organizing around. The ‘Guild Socialism’ of the early 20th century had support within elements of the British labor movement. The Wilson Government of the 1970’s received industrial support to expand worker ownership through ‘Benn Coops’. Similarly, the Bullock Report that proposed worker representation on boards of British companies, was endorsed by the Trade Union Congress (TUC).
In northern Italy, the trade union movement has for over 150 years played a significant role in the operation of worker cooperatives in the solidarity economy of Emilia Romagna. More recently in the United States, the ‘union coop’ movement has emerged with encouraging results, particularly in Cincinnati where 15 worker coops have delivered democratic, unionised jobs.
Fast forward to today and trade unions are seeing even more success in the fight to democratize the British economy. Unions led the charge for the adoption of Fair Work Charters in several regions and have worked with many councils to insource services back into democratic local authority control. The campaign to reform the draconian labor laws of the past decades is also being driven by trade unions - lead by the Communication Workers Union (CWU) - in the form of the the New Deal for Workers.
The CWU was the first British union to openly support Community Wealth Building, proudly stating that it “should be the main approach to local economic development across the UK by ensuring more of our economy is democratically and socially owned.”
The CWU is now exploring worker owned models for the Post Office and beyond. While supporting public ownership of Royal Mail, CWU-led negotiations have yielded a 10% profit share for workers, and greater participation in decision making structures in the business.
But the CWU is not the only union looking to Community Wealth Building as a powerful organizing tool.
In the north west of England, trade unions are showing interest in a UK arm of the Drivers Cooperative, offering a potential, democratic, worker-owned alternative to Uber and Deliveroo. The Community trade union is supporting a British version of Smart Coop, where freelancers organise themselves cooperatively. And the Scottish Trades Union Council remains a vocal supporter, engaging with the Scottish Parliament on incoming Community Wealth Building legislation.
In the face of global uncertainties and when the need for a democratic economy is greater than ever, The Democracy Collaborative will be deepening work with unions in the near future: Collaborating with organised labor, bringing exciting opportunities to deliver systemic change on behalf of working people by working people.
Matthew Brown is Senior Fellow for the Promotion of Community Wealth Building in the UK for The Democracy Collaborative
