In July, Sen. Angus King (I) Maine paid a visit to the Island Employee Cooperative (IEC), which converted to employee ownership in July of 2014 with the assistance of Rob Brown, Director of CDI’s Business Ownership Solutions program. The IEC is the second largest worker co-op in New England with 65 employees. Sen. King and his staff toured the businesses that comprise the co-op, and met with IEC’s worker-owners to learn more about cooperative development, what worker ownership means to them, and what can be done from a policy perspective to advance and support the sale of small businesses to worker ownership.
“They’re a great success story,” says Rob Brown. “They’re the largest worker cooperative in Maine. One of the largest employers on this island. Second largest worker co-op in all of New England. So they’re a model to look to.”
WABI TV from Bangor was there to cover the story: Worker Owned Business Thriving in Stonington