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Democracy at Work in an Indian Industrial Cooperative : The Story of Kerala Dinesh Beedi / T. M. Thomas Isaac, Pyralal Raghavan, Richard W. Franke.

By: Contributor(s): Material type: TextTextSeries: Cornell International Industrial and Labor Relations ReportsPublisher: Ithaca, NY : Cornell University Press, [2018]Copyright date: ©1998Description: 1 online resource (272 p.) : 1 map, 2 drawings, 10 halftonesContent type:
Media type:
Carrier type:
ISBN:
  • 9781501717550
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 334/.68371/095483
LOC classification:
  • HD9146.I44K477 1998
Other classification:
  • online - DeGruyter
Online resources:
Contents:
Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Note On The Spelling Of Indian Place-Names -- CHAPTER ONE. Beedi Workers And The Kerala Model -- CHAPTER TWO. The Making Of The Beedi Working Class -- CHAPTER THREE. Solidarity Versus Retrenchment: The Birth Of KDB -- CHAPTER FOUR. From Mobilization To Efficiency: The Role Of The Central Society -- CHAPTER FIVE. The Dynamics Of Shop Floor Democracy: Empowerment Versus Supervision In The Beedi Primary Cooperatives -- CHAPTER SIX. Efficiency And Profit In The Primary Societies: KDB's Market Dilemma -- CHAPTER SEVEN. KDB And The International Movement For Workers7 Cooperatives -- AFTERWORD. Tobacco Production And Diversification At KDB -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index
Summary: The authors tell the story of a democratic workers' cooperative that makes hand-rolled cigarettes, known as "beedis," in the unorganized sector of a fiercely competitive capitalist economy in India. For decades, beedi workers have been among the most exploited and impoverished of India's work force. In 1969, in the southwestern Indian state of Kerala, several thousand workers banded together to form a worker-owned beedi cooperative. The authors argue that their skill and determination, combined with Kerala's generally leftist political culture, allowed them to beat the odds. The cooperative surprised the private sector beedi barons by creating an enterprise that has lasted and prospered, offering the best wages and benefits in the business, while making a profit and contributing to the local economy.The authors analyze the major features of the cooperative, assessing its overall structure, worker-elected management, shop floor democracy, and progress in providing a better life for its worker-owners. Tensions are also discussed, including the complaints of women workers and the need for diversification from tobacco.

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Note On The Spelling Of Indian Place-Names -- CHAPTER ONE. Beedi Workers And The Kerala Model -- CHAPTER TWO. The Making Of The Beedi Working Class -- CHAPTER THREE. Solidarity Versus Retrenchment: The Birth Of KDB -- CHAPTER FOUR. From Mobilization To Efficiency: The Role Of The Central Society -- CHAPTER FIVE. The Dynamics Of Shop Floor Democracy: Empowerment Versus Supervision In The Beedi Primary Cooperatives -- CHAPTER SIX. Efficiency And Profit In The Primary Societies: KDB's Market Dilemma -- CHAPTER SEVEN. KDB And The International Movement For Workers7 Cooperatives -- AFTERWORD. Tobacco Production And Diversification At KDB -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index

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The authors tell the story of a democratic workers' cooperative that makes hand-rolled cigarettes, known as "beedis," in the unorganized sector of a fiercely competitive capitalist economy in India. For decades, beedi workers have been among the most exploited and impoverished of India's work force. In 1969, in the southwestern Indian state of Kerala, several thousand workers banded together to form a worker-owned beedi cooperative. The authors argue that their skill and determination, combined with Kerala's generally leftist political culture, allowed them to beat the odds. The cooperative surprised the private sector beedi barons by creating an enterprise that has lasted and prospered, offering the best wages and benefits in the business, while making a profit and contributing to the local economy.The authors analyze the major features of the cooperative, assessing its overall structure, worker-elected management, shop floor democracy, and progress in providing a better life for its worker-owners. Tensions are also discussed, including the complaints of women workers and the need for diversification from tobacco.

Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.

In English.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 26. Apr 2024)