Work and disability: cooperativism and social inclusion

Abstract

Having as a departing point an intervention which resulted in the creation of a mixed work cooperative, this paper aims at discussing work cooperatives as a space for the social inclusion of handicapped people. The notions of economic solidarity and cooperativism are used as an alternative to the capitalist logic of production so as to bring up a reflection on the establishing of spaces of solidarity in which people who are out of work - be them handicapped or not - may establish a basis for both material and emotional exchange.