This paper examines the phenomenon of worker 'recovered' factories, self-management and social struggles in contemporary capitalism. It begins with a brief historical retrospect of these issues and descriptively locates the recovered companies. The study focuses on an analysis of various forms of worker control on the instruments of labor, and the opportunity that they present to make autonomous the collective practices of class organization. One of the innovative characteristics of the article is the use of the field of the Social Studies of Science and Technology to analyze these new 'social relations', forms of control and organizational practices. The essay combines the reflections of three researchers concerned with the current and previous experiences of workers, where collectivism and egalitarianism are bases for self-management of production and social life.
history of self-management; recovered factories; technology; autonomy