Employee Ownership Blog

In the Chinese version of the State of the Union address, China's premier Li Peng has given his approval for reforms of state-run enterprises, including allowing employees to own stock in their companies.

Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle (D-SD) has introduced legislation to allow owners of stock in closely held companies to take a tax deduction for contributions of their shares to an ESOP.

A new NCEO study concludes that 5 million employees work for companies with broad stock option plans. The estimate is probably conservative, but still reflects the enormous growth is this approach to employee ownership.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) announced this month (March 1997) that it would change accounting standards for the way companies calculate per-share net earnings. The new rules are effective December 15, 1997.

The Travelers Group, a financial services company that includes Travelers/Aetna Insurance, Smith Barney, Commercial Credit, and other businesses, will make annual contributions of stock options equal to 10% of pay to all employees participating in its 401(k) plan.

China's new leader, Jiang Zhemin, has said that employee ownership is an approach that should be considered for smaller enterprises. In China, that can include companies with thousands of employees. There are already a number of local governments selling off enterprises to employees.

The Department of Labor has released its annual report on employee benefit plans, including employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs).

1996 tax law changes are unlikely to create many new ESOPs in Subchapter S companies. That's the conclusion reached by Bob Stiles of Liberty Check Printers in Mounds View, MN, the first Subchapter S company to set up an ESOP after the new law was passed.

The Senate Democratic leadership has introduced legislation that would affect employee ownership.

Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) has modified her proposal to limit employer stock in 401(k) plans.

A new study by Coopers and Lybrand has found that companies that grant stock options broadly grow faster than those that do not.

In the second-largest ESOP transaction ever, Occidental Petroleum is setting up an unusual leveraged ESOP for the 1,850 employees of its MidCon natural-gas pipeline division.