[p2p-research] In Defense of Worker Ownership

[Patrick Anderson]

Alex Rollin wrote:
> if the worker is not a consumer, what then?

The worker is guaranteed to be the consumer of *something*, for no
human can exist unless they consume the outputs of other organisms.

So every worker needs ownership in that which he consumes.

And every non-working 'dependent' also needs ownership in that which
he consumes.

This ownership protects each human from paying profit and also gives
him full dominion over that production.

Even more astounding, when a worker (human) has sufficient ownership
in the Sources of that which he consumes, then the 'problems' of
abundance and automation disappear.  There is no longer a reason to
throttle production or destroy product or be afraid of innovation.

So it is true that workers (humans) need ownership, but it is for the
purpose of consuming, not for the purpose of working.  We don't *need*
work, we only *need* to consume.


Maybe the problem in understanding this concept is that we must
consider all industries at once.

Within the context of Workers having sufficient ownership in the
Sources of those things which the *consume*, what reasons are there
for Workers to have *extra* ownership in Sources simply because they
possess skills needed to operate those Sources?

Disconnecting Ownership from the Work allows humans to easily choose
and change occupations without being bound to one course because of
heavy financial investment.

It is also more likely for us to escape the claws of the bankers since
the number of humans that consume any product is almost always much
larger than the number of workers needed in that pursuit.

Let's say I like to milk cows but am allergic to milk.  I don't need
any ownership in the dairy to successfully work there.  What good
would it do me?

So I may not be able to consume cow-milk, but we know I must consume
*something*.

If I like Almond-milk, I need some ownership in a Almond orchard and
the equipment needed to create that product even if I never work
there.

My ownership in the orchard will protect me from paying profit and
will also give me full dominion over what goes into my body.

The workers in the Almond orchard and those who shell and grind/press
the nuts into milk need only as much ownership in those Sources as
they have interest in consuming that product.

Ownership in the Sources is vital for Consumers, but is only a
liability for Workers.

The only value I see in Worker Ownership is the coercive power it
gives them to stop other potential workers from doing that work for a
lower wage or to force those Consumers to pay more than real Costs in
other ways.