(1) The net earnings or losses of an employee cooperative shall be apportioned and distributed at the times and in the manner as the articles of incorporation or bylaws shall specify. Net earnings declared as patronage allocations with respect to a period of time, and paid or credited to members, shall be apportioned among the members in accordance with the ratio which each member's patronage during the period involved bears to total patronage by all members during that period.

(2) The apportionment, distribution, and payment of net earnings required by subsection (1) of this section may be in cash, credits, written notices of allocation, or capital stock issued by the employee cooperative.