Since co-ops vary so widely, there's no single answer to that question, but it's obviously something that co-ops take into account in their articles of incorporation or equivalent. In some co-ops its exactly like a corporation (ie, your boss fires you). Others have more involved procedures, but there's always a procedure. In some it will be a moot question, since worker pay is often set up as a formula based on net income. If net income goes negative, nobody gets paid.