Madelyn Hammack
The Democracy at Work Institute (DAWI) recently released its 2023 Worker Cooperative State of the Sector Report. The report, which covers two years of business progress among worker-owned and democratic workplaces in the US, takes into account the latest developments in the worker cooperative space and aims to increase understanding of the sector as a whole.
Corey Rosen
The Institute for Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing at Rutgers University will offer approximately 10 competitive research fellowships for the 2025–2026 academic year. Several $50,000, $25,000, and $10,000 fellowships will be offered. The deadline for applications is March 31, 2025.
Corey Rosen
President-elect Donald Trump has not said anything we are aware of about employee ownership during his political career, so it is difficult to know what approach he will take to the issue. Many of his former advisors and other people with similar views were involved with Project 2025, however, although he and his campaign have distanced themselves from it. Project 2025's proposed 180-day transition playbook, Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise, states (pp. 610-11):
Matt Scott
On October 10, 2024, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) published a final rule to amend the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to implement Section 874 of the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) as well as improvements contained in Section 872 of the 2024 NDAA. The rule is set to take effect on November 25, 2024.
Corey Rosen
A new study by the Brookings Institution and Washington University’s Olin Business School finds that employees are significantly more likely to remain working for their employer and to be satisfied with their jobs in companies that transition ownership through ESOPs and other employee ownership models compared to other business transition models. The study also recommends that Congress pass the Promotion and Expansion of Private Employee Ownership Act of 2023 and support efforts of private equity firms, such as those involved with Ownership Works, to include employee ownership in business transitions.
Corey Rosen
We will post an update when the OMB completes its review of the proposed regulations, which should happen before the end of 2024.
Corey Rosen
In the last several years, there has been a growing trend for private equity firms to include broad-based employee ownership programs in their transactions. This trend has gained national attention, with stories on 60 Minutes, Freakonomics, the New York Times, and many other news outlets. The new paper Private Equity and Employee Ownership (PDF; also see the embedded version below) by NCEO founder Corey Rosen looks at the history of private equity and employee ownership in the 1980s and the current wave of interest among some large private equity firms in sharing ownership with employees.
Timothy Garbinsky
Rutgers University just launched the University Consortium on Employee Share Ownership, which is "dedicated to fostering collaboration among university-based initiatives that advance the study and practice of employee share ownership." In a press release from October 22, the school's Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing announced that, in convening 12 universities for this express purpose, it has created the first higher education network in the employee ownership space.
Nancy Wiefek
ESOP companies know that helping employees feel like an owner is key to getting the best outcomes. Still, creating that feeling in day-to-day operations is a complex task requiring more than just putting high-performance management practices in place. Companies must also create positive feelings and a connection to the company. This mindset can give ESOP companies a unique advantage over traditional companies.
