This paper attempts to analyze the meaning of cooperativism to the seamstresses of the Parque São Bartolomeu Cooperativa, in the Subúrbio Ferroviário (Train Suburb), area of Salvador . In the context of globalization, cooperativism is becoming a productive alternative for minimizing social exclusion. It is said that the cooperative organization needs a change in professional relations but, unlike the capitalist organization, seeks to maintain a flatter organization. The understanding of the meaning of cooperative leads to a better understanding of organizational identity of popular cooperatives work. The analysis of the meaning was achieved in the answers of the workers cooperatives in two questionnaires given at different times of the cooperative's operations. It was used cognitive maps to analyse and categorize open ended answers. One of the most important conclusions was that the meaning of cooperative work has five dimensions: a) social, b) organizational, c) rational, d) political-economical, and e) legal, with enphasie on the social aspect.