Le performances delle cooperative di servizi durante la crisi: un'analisi nel periodo 2009-2011 (The Performance of Service Cooperatives in Times of Crisis: An Analysis in 2009-2011)

Abstract

This research, conducted with the traditional method of financial ratios, analyzes the economic and financial performance registered by 30 workers cooperatives operating in the field of services in 2009-2011. Cooperatives under investigation are of average size (turnover between 30 and 50 million euro) and large (turnover of more than 50 million euro). The results support the argument that cooperatives have a strong resilience during times of economic crisis. In particular, the cooperatives operating in the field of multi-services (mainly cleaning and waste collection services) and food service activities have registered brilliant results, while those operating in the field of transportation and cargo, have been more severely affected by the crisis of the manufacturing sector. The same conclusions result from the analysis carried out on employment data. The results for firm size show that bigger cooperatives have better performances.