Comments on Employee Ownership in the UK

The opening line of Merryn Somerset Webb's September 28 review in the Financial Times (subscription required) of the Labour Party's proposed policy to promote employee ownership is "If there is one thing that absolutely everyone believes, it is that employee share ownership is a very good thing." The Labour Party has proposed that all companies with 250 or more employees be required to set aside shares for employees. Webb suggests some problems with the plan, noting that some of the dividends earned by employee stock would be paid to the state and that the 10% given to workers is a transfer away from existing shareholders.

Writing in the Guardian on September 27, Nils Pratley argues that Labour's proposal could induce the Conservatives to develop their alternative approach to promoting employee ownership.