Cohousing-L Mailing List: FW: Work vs Pay

[Sharon Villines (sharonvillines]

on 8/3/00 4:36 PM, Kay Argyle at argyle [at] mines.utah.edu wrote:
> 
> How about, anybody can buy out of community work for the price that their
> employer has set on their time?  That takes the question of affordability
> off the table.


I've been in groups that have tried this. How do you value the time of
people who do not technically have an annual income? Minimum wage? Split the
income of a one-wage family amongst the adults?

Not a criticism -- a real question. I helped start a coop school with
tuition based on family income adjusted for special needs (supporting an
aging parent, having an older child in a different school, special medical
needs, etc).

I'll never do it again. People have very, very, very different
interpretations of "income" and "needs". Only once, however, did someone say
in my presence, "I can't afford to pay for the teacher's medical insurance
because I need another room on my house in the Hamptons."

In a "shared cost" system everyone has a greater understanding of what
things cost and pay much more attention to budget and equal sharing. Then
you can find funds in other ways to help those that everyone agrees have
special needs. A house in the Hamptons does not qualify.

Sorry, I ran on again.

Sharon.