autogestión

Autogestión, or self-management, is a mode of organizational governance in which control over decision-making and the use of resources resides with the members of the organization rather than with external managers or owners. In worker cooperatives and employee-owned firms, members participate in planning, budgeting, hiring, and strategic direction, often through democratic rules such as one member one vote. The aim is to align workplace power with those who contribute labor and to reduce hierarchical authority within the organization or project.

Historically, autogestión has roots in libertarian, socialist, and anarchist thought and has been put into practice in various forms across different regions. Notable examples include worker cooperatives in the Basque Country and, in some periods, the Mondragón Cooperative Complex in Spain, which coordinates a federation of worker-owned enterprises while preserving worker control. In Latin America, periods of economic and political upheaval have seen recuperated factories and other worker-managed initiatives as ways to sustain production and employment outside traditional corporate structures.

Forms and practices vary from fully worker-owned and democratically governed firms to community organizations that manage housing, services, or cultural projects. Proponents emphasize benefits such as enhanced worker empowerment, alignment between labor and purpose, and local resilience; critics point to challenges in capital access, coordination in larger or more complex organizations, and the need to balance participatory processes with efficiency.

Autogestión remains a reference point in discussions of cooperative economics, social movements, and community administration, particularly where democratic control and social solidarity are central goals.