Employee Ownership Blog

The NCEO now estimates that employees own the rights to 5.8% of the corporate stock in the U.S. The estimates are based on Form 5500 filings for ESOPs and 401(k) plans and an estimate of the value of stock options granted broadly to employees.

A new survey of 3,173 companies for the Bureau of the Census looks at participation in the workplace.

In Technical Advice Memorandum (TAM) 9503002, issued January 9, 1995, the IRS said that a plan that allows employees to use their 401(k) deferrals to repay an ESOP loan does not violate ERISA.

United Airlines will remain the most closely watched employee ownership company for some time.

According to Karol Szadurski, head of UNIA, the Polish employee ownership support organization, there are now over 1,000 companies in Poland with broad employee ownership. Karol's fax to us did not indicate what percentage of these were majority employee owned.

The rhetoric about employee participation appears to have far outraced the reality. In a survey of plant and site managers at companies with more than 20 employees, only 18% report even having experimented with employee work teams.

In a few Canadian provinces, employees are able to get both provincial and federal tax credits for buying employer stock. They can also get credits for investing in labor venture capital funds that invest in local companies.

For the third consecutive year, an employee ownership company and NCEO member has been named one of the five recipients of the Business Enterprise Trust Award. The award recognizes excellence in balancing free enterprise objectives with socially responsible actions.

In determining whether an ESOP allocation is allowed, don't forget to consider attribution rules. Spouses and dependent children, and possibly others, can have their income attributed to another individual.