Exploitation and Workers'Co-operatives: a reply to Alan Carter

ABSTRACT In a recent paper Alan Carter argues that the claim that workers'co-operatives merely replace exploitation by employers with 'self-exploitation'is nonsense: the term 'self-exploitation'is self-contradictory. He maintains that the only form of exploitation to which a workers'co-operative may be said to be subject is 'market-exploitation'by dominant economic actors who are external to the co-operative. I argue that these conclusions are mistaken. While the concept of 'market-exploitation'is not without value, it is difficult to operationalise. While the concept of 'self-exploitation'is, understood literally, incoherent, the claims defended by some of the users of this term can be made conceptually respectable.