The working title of my research is simply Why Isn't There More Worker-Ownership in Ontario,  however, I suspect I will retitle my research after it has concluded, based on the findings. 

My research supervisor is Dr.Robert Gillezeau (read more about him here: http://www.rob-gillezeau.com/ ). Gillezeau has extensive knowledge and experience regarding labour economics and public policy. 

I chose this research topic because I am deeply interested in economics and peoples' socio-economic conditions. Data shows worker coops are significantly superior to conventional businesses in many regards such as resilience, longevity, efficiency, employee compensation and satisfaction, and so on (of course there is lots of nuance behind such stats but this is just a quick run down). After learning about how worker coops are better than the conventional business I naturally wondered 'Why hasn't the coop model competed the conventional businesses out of existence?', or at the very least why aren't there more worker coops in Ontario? My research will seek to offer some insight into this topic. 

My objectives are:

- Create a detailed catalogue of the advantages and challenges worker coops face.

- Look into why - be it historical, political, financial, economic, etc... (or likely a combination of them all) - coops aren't more common in Ontario.

- Create a list of policies that would increase the rates and success of worker coops in Ontario; should the government deem that desirable. 

My methodology consists of a literature review as well as interviews with relevant parties; worker-owners, organizations such as the Ontario Cooperative Association, the Canadian Worker Co-op Federation, the University of Wisconsin Centre for Cooperatives, and so on. As part of my research, specifically when developing policy recommendations,  I may look into (and interview accordingly) foreign jurisdictions which see higher rates of worker ownership and coop success to see what led to such a reality and if such conditions could be replicated here in Ontario. 

This is just a very brief overview of my research. I look forward to any questions, comments, and/or concerns which come my way.

Cheers,

Jake Barton