Brasília, June 27, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - A successful company without employees or bosses. Though it is unusual, there is nothing out of place. It represents an alternative way to generate income, through cooperatives and associations. This approach will be the rallying point of the recently created National Secretariat of the Solidary Economy, in the Ministry of Labor.
In this system, all workers are partners in their own business. Decisions are taken by vote at general assemblies of the owners. This method has existed since the beginning of the '90's, but now it has the backing of the federal government.
"The Ministry of Labor will create agencies to provide incentives for economic solidarity and will invest in existing agencies," affirms the national secretary of the Solidary Economy, the economist Paul Singer, who took office yesterday. The Secretariat of the Solidary Economy will also make credit available to cooperatives in the areas of production, services, and labor. But this will occur in the second half of the year, since the sector still has no budget provision.
GOOD FOR THE PRODUCER, GOOD FOR THE CONSUMER
One type of cooperative that has expanded in Brazil is made up of small producers who can't compete with big companies. When they get together, they become the equivalent of a big company, with returns to scale of production. "In this manner, they can finance many services in common and become more competitive," Singer explains. The consumer also gains from this arrangement, since, most of the time, the service ends up costing less.
In some cases, cooperatives represent a reduction of poverty in metropolitan areas. One of the ways found to guarantee the subsistence of trash separators in poverty pockets of big cities was to professionalize trash separation. Trash separators organized themselves and became separators of recyclable material. In the Federal District, trash separators have access to equipment to help them separate materials and earn up to R$ 600 per month. (DAS)