Employee Ownership Prominent on Most Ethical Companies List
A new survey of more than 3,000 people by MarketBeat listed nine employee-owned companies on its list of the 118 most ethical companies in the US. The survey asked people to name the companies that most closely align with their personal and moral values. All but two of the employee-owned companies on the list (H-E-B and Wawa) are majority employee-owned, and all but two (H-E-B and Edward Jones) are employee-owned through ESOPs.
| Company | Rank | Business | Plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Publix | 6 | Supermarkets | ESOP |
| King Arthur Baking | 24 | Baking products | ESOP |
| Wawa | 25 | Convenience stores | ESOP |
| H-E-B | 27 | Supermarkets | Profit sharing invested in company stock |
| Edward Jones | 60 | Brokerage | Partnership |
| Dakotah Supply Group | 80 | Contractor supplies | ESOP |
| ReVision Energy | 89 | Solar energy | ESOP |
| Cape Air | 110 | Airline | ESOP |
| W.L. Gore | 113 | Manufacturer | ESOP |
The article by MarketBeat notes that “Several admired companies, including Publix, Tillamook, and Organic Valley, operate on cooperative or employee-ownership models. Consumer[s], it appears, like[] to reward structures where profits go back to workers and local communities, as opposed to distant shareholders.”