The economic benefits of employee-owned businesses are proven to be better for the selling owner, the business itself, the employee owners, and its surrounding communities.

Data shows that worker-owned companies offer better pay and benefits contributing to more middle-wage jobs. They also have lower employee turnover, improve business longevity, and have higher productivity. Co-ops put more money back into the local economy, creating more resilience for economic downturns.

Detroit employer businesses are at about 15% of the level they should be if Detroit’s Black population’s business percentage were on par with the rest of the United States. However, since Detroit has the highest percentage of Black residents in the nation, that number would actually need to increase by 7-fold. Other measures like average pay, revenue for the company, and others are abysmally out of proportion as well. This doesn’t include microbusinesses or non-employer firms, which account for about 95% of Black-owned businesses.

Investing in the development and growth of worker-owned cooperatives in Detroit will ensure that Detroit residents have an opportunity for their skills to have economic value, and have direct ownership over their economic worth.