Co-operative Leaders share success stories with White House officials

One hundred and fifty co-operative leaders from across America will be meeting with top policy makers in the White House today to share their success stories and discuss...

One hundred and fifty co-operative leaders from across America will be meeting with top policy makers in the White House today to share their success stories and discuss how their organisations can help to spur on economic recovery.

As part of the event Senior Obama Administration Officials will meet with the co-op leaders in breakout sessions to discuss small business development, job creation, innovative agriculture programs and financial cooperatives.

The Administration will also hear stories of the successful co-operatives such as Cooperative Care and Home Care Associates, which are worker cooperatives that offer quality in-home care for the elderly, disabled and mentally ill and Resident-owned Communities (ROC) USA, which helped provide affordable housing for those living on low incomes by allowing owners of manufactured and mobile homes to co-operatively purchase the land beneath their structures.

The event will begin with a briefing by the Administration and has been organised by the National Co-operative Business Association who provide support to help to start grow co-operatives across a variety of sectors.

Liz Bailey, interim president and chief executive officer of the National Cooperative Business Association said: "Every day cooperatives around the U.S. are stimulating the economy and we are pleased to have the opportunity to discuss our successes in job creation and ways to use the cooperative model to continue to strengthen communities large and small."

There are 29,000 co-operative businesses currently in America today. They cover industries including: agriculture, healthcare, financial services and credit unions. They account for more than $3 trillion in assets, over $500 billion in total revenue and $25 billion in wages and benefits.

Ms Bailey went on to explain: "Two million jobs are generated each year as a direct result of cooperatives, which illustrates the incredible impact that these organizations have on local economies."

The White House Leaders Briefing is a weekly program that allows community leaders to speak to the White House about issues that are affecting their communities.  

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