Rochester fights poverty by extending business ownership to employees

Rochester is creating secure, well-paid jobs for its most vulnerable residents by developing worker-owned firms to tender for service contracts with major civic institutions. In the cooperative model, workers are eligible to become members and receive a stake in the company after approximately one year. The project is overseen by a non-profit entity which acts as a holding company to identify openings, create new cooperatives and establish links with target anchor institutions. The initiative is part of a campaign by the City of Rochester to more than halve poverty rates by 2030.