From its inception, Hotel Bauen, located in the city centre, has been surrounded by controversy. Built in 1978 with loans from the military government, the Bauen was originally designed to host tourists arriving in Argentina for the World Cup that year.

After a period of decadence, its former owner, Mercelo Iurcovich, filed for bankruptcy in February 2000, having accumulated a debt of US$8 million. In 2003, the abandoned site was retaken by its previous employees, with the backing of the National Movement of Recovered Businesses (MNER).

According to the cooperative model, each worker earns an equal wage and has equal say in the management of the hotel. Over the past eight years, the cooperative has gained recognition as a hub of political and cultural activity.

Recently, a new round of negotiations has been triggered by ownership claims issued by Iurcovich’s firm Mercoteles. In November, an eviction order was issued. Although the process did not come into effect, Iurcovich’s threat still lingers. The hotel’s 160 workers have taken the case to court, asking for the state to expropriate the building and lease it to them. A host of deputies, human rights organisations and fellow corporative workers have rallied in their defence.

Do you think the workers have the right to ask for an expropriation? And are cooperatives viable initiatives in a capitalist economy? The Argentina Independent hit the streets to find out.

Photos by Natasha Ali

Alberto, 59, Accountant, Recoleta

To me, its a disastrous situation, the workers being in control, because they always cause problems. In my opinion, union workers are criminals. If there’s one that is not a criminal, it is an exception to the rule. The problem is that cooperatives are managed by union workers and union workers are bad at managing businesses…they are to blame for everything that is wrong with this country. All unionists are millionaires – it is a disgrace. It has always been the same. Cooperatives do not work because everyone should earn according to how hard they work. If someone is not putting in his share, he should not earn the same as someone who is working hard. The problem is that quid pro quo reigns in this country.

Cinthia Olivera, 24, Student, Province of Buenos Aires

As far as I know the owner filed for bankruptcy which made the ex employers redundant. The owner did not only lose the building and his business, but also his shares. As far as I can see, there has to be joint responsibility of the hotel. To be honest, I do not know exactly what is going on in the current court case but I have been to the Bauen recently to listen to some bands to raise money for the restoration of the building. I am aware of the cultural scene the hotel has to offer but I do not know much about the internal politics. It seems to me that the cooperatives are a good idea. The Bauen has a central place in Argentine history – my parents went there when they were young. The Bauen is not the only example of the cooperatives here – there are a lot of factories that are based on the same model. I support the cooperatives but I do not agree that everyone should earn the same salary: everyone has to earn according to the work they put it.

Estella Banelo, 48, Kiosk manager, Southern Buenos Aires

Yes, I think that cooperatives can function well… Of course, I support the workers! The workers should have the right to continue managing the building since the owner abandoned the place. It seems to me that they have to reach an agreement with the owner to make sure he does not usurp the building and these people do not lose their jobs. Cooperatives seem like a fantastic concept to me and they have been very successful in the past. Businesses work much more effectively without a hierarchical structure…its a great way to maintain sources of work. There have been many such models in the textile industry as well.

Elizabeth Rojas, 46, Public Services, Quilmes

I do not know a great deal about the subject but I know that the owners left in 2001 and the workers took charge of the hotel. I think the initiative worked. There are many more examples like it – in other factories in the city. Historically, cooperatives have worked very well in this country but they are not as strong as they once were. Such initiatives function at a political level too. Given that we are living in a different democratic period, cooperatives have to adapt. I do not agree that all the workers should earn the same salary as having a guaranteed wage does provide an incentive to work and everyone needs to pay taxes to contribute to society.

Demetre Salán, 58, Newspaper seller, Pompeya

The cooperative does not function at all! The owner shut up shop in 2001 and since then the hotel has totally deteriorated. We live in a capitalist society and everyone has to earn their keep. Who is going to finance the hotel if the workers expropriate it? The money has to come from somewhere. The owner is clearly going to win the lawsuit. Give me an example of where cooperatives work… Look there are two systems: socialism and capitalism. Capitalism has triumphed on a global scale. The workers have been there for ten years and look, the hotel is still in the same condition it was ten years ago. After 2001, many people abandoned their businesses and cooperatives replaced them… there have been some examples where cooperatives have worked in Latin America. But, now in this system, they are not viable.

Workers from the Hotel Bauen gathered outside the Social Security and Commercial Federal Court yesterday to support the expropriation of the hotel.

They were joined by social groups, members from political parties, and supporters who held up traffic around Av. Callao and Av. Santa Fe.

The demonstration was a show of support for the workers who have run the hotel as a cooperative and who were facing court hearing later in the day. The hearing, brought in front of Judge Paula Hualde, sees the cooperative members who want to continue running the reclaimed hotel fighting against its former owner, Marcelo Iurcovich.

Iurcovich and his firm Mercoteles claim they own the building, and ordered an eviction of the workers in November last year. Although the eviction was not carried out the threat still hangs over the cooperative’s working lives.

Iurcovich promised he would continue to employ the 160 running the hotel if he won the case, but the workers rejected his proposal.

Federico Tonarelli, head of the cooperative said after the hearing, “It became clear both to the judge and to the former employer that we are not willing to give up the continuation of the cooperative.”

The Bauen Hotel, located on Callao 300, is run as a cooperative. After the 2001 economic crisis, the owners of the hotel decided it was not worth the upkeep and abandoned it.

In their absence the workers took over and re-opened the 180-roomed hotel two years later, but instead of running it as a hierarchal organisation, they created a cooperative model. Each worker is a member and each person earns the same wage, has equal say, and all decisions are made as a group.