Worker-member is a member of a worker cooperative who is a natural person and whose patronage consists of the labor or other work contributed, giving that person ownership, a vote, and a share of the cooperative's surplus.
The term is defined in California's Cooperative Corporation Law, which 📝California AB 816 amended in 2015: a worker-member is "a member of a worker cooperative who is a natural person and also a patron" (Corporations Code §12238). At least 51 percent of a 📝Worker Cooperative's workers must be worker-members or candidates on track for membership, which keeps the form from being used by businesses owned by a minority of their workforce. Worker-members typically vote on a one-member, one-vote basis, elect the board, and receive 📝Patronage Dividends according to their contributions, which the law reserves for the worker-member class.
A worker-member differs from a non-member employee, who works without ownership, and from a 📝Community Investor, who holds shares without working in the cooperative and whose vote is limited to major structural decisions. A cooperative's articles of incorporation and bylaws set the specific rights and obligations of its worker-members, including how contributions are measured.