Tuesday, June 24 saw a major victory for class struggle in Argentina. The Buenos Aires Senate approved the expropriation of Madygraf, a worker-managed factory without bosses. Outside the chamber, a delegation of workers celebrated the measure alongside supporting organizations, chanting, “Here they are, they are the workers without bosses!” It was a victory for the entire working class.

The Buenos Aires Senate approved several measures, including full expropriation of the property, machinery, facilities, and tools. These will be transferred, for a fee, to the Madygraf Limited Workers Cooperative, intended exclusively for its purposes. The provincial government of Buenos Aires has five years to carry out the expropriation, and immediately blocks the bankruptcy process that the former owner intended to pursue.

This legal framework was won in the streets through struggle and solidarity in the eleven years since Madygraf was established. For years, its workers have worked on projects at the service of the community, such as the manufacture of school notebooks and the production of hand sanitizer during the pandemic.

“Families on the Street, Never Again!”

In 2014, after the closure of the multinational corporation Donnelley — which left over 400 families on the street — the workers occupied the graphic plant in northern Buenos Aires, Argentina. Rather than giving up and going home, they moved production under workers’ control and called it Madygraf, demonstrating that a company can operate without bosses. 

This feat was one of several similar experiences, like that of the Zanon ceramics factory in Neuquén, Argentina. Zanon has been a beacon for worker ownership and self-management since 2001, inspiring others around the world.

The takeover of Donnelley is part of a long history of labor struggles that took place during those years. Several factories in the area fought against employers, the Ministry of Labor, and the government of Daniel Scioli (a historic Peronist figure, now a minister in the reactionary government of far-right president Javier Milei). They promoted a slogan as a banner of struggle: “Families on the street, never again!”

The wives of the workers went out to fight alongside them. The creation of the Women’s Commission was a strategic pillar in the resistance against the Donnelley management. During the conflicts leading up to the closure (2010-2014), their organization allowed them to sustain the struggle in the streets, such as the historic protests on the Panamerican Highway where they faced repression. Many of those brave women are now part of Madygraf.

The women also raised the need to establish a daycare and playroom for children. Since child care is a necessity and a shared responsibility, the proceeds from the soccer tournaments held by the men are also directed towards this effort. These same experiences are being embraced and replicated by women in other workplaces and settings.

A Place of Organization, Not Just a Factory

For the workers of Madygraf, an important topic to address is the function of their work. In other words, in the service of whom or what is it being carried out? This is why a significant part of the printing production is aimed at meeting the needs of thousands of children, like making notebooks. 

Thanks to the workers’ management of the factory, they are able to plan the entire production process. This has led to an increase in personnel rotation, a reduction in shift times, and an increase in break times, which has motivated them to be more aware of the health and well-being of their colleagues.

Those years of organization, resistance, and solidarity allowed workers to remain at their workplace. Madygraf now legally belongs to those who sustained it with work and solidarity. But the significance of this victory goes beyond that: Madygraf is not just a factory — it is a place of organization, and a socio-cultural reference in the suburbs and the larger metropolitan area of Buenos Aires. There, open concerts are held for the community, as well as theatrical productions, like “La Fábrica,” inspired by its history.

Originally published in Spanish on June 24 in La Izquierda Diario.