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EFES NEWSLETTER - APRIL 2010
Democratizing
employee ownership
Every large European company has 4 Top Executives on average,
each holding 6.475.000 € in his company in 2009. Most large
European companies have now employee share plans. Most of
them express the idea that employee ownership should be
increased in order to align employees and shareholders'
interests. However, most companies began with share plans
for Top Executives. This is to be compared with 9.3 million
common employee owners, each holding 10.000 € in 2009. Many
discussions occurred recently about Executives' remunerations.
What about ownership? More
Employee
shareholders rights in European companies
Which are the good practices? Which models, which obstacles
across Europe? Could it be more effective? A European Report
will be written with the support of the European Commission
and a European Conference will be held in Rome on September
16-17, 2010. It will contribute to open a new door for social
dialogue and corporate governance items. Here the new dedicated website
Press
review
Due to changes in Google formats, this press review
is now much more difficult and we missed a lot of information,
especially in Spanish and in German languages. We are looking
for new solutions. This is why we have only 1.016 articles
in this press review in March 2010 (on which 429 involving
stock options and 121 about workers' cooperatives). We made
a selection of 50 remarkable articles in 10 countries:
Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Kenya, Switzerland, UK,
USA, South Africa, Zimbabwe.
Australia:
Possible employee buyout in the meat industry - Australian
Employee Buyout Center at work.
Canada:
Proposed changes in stock options taxation. The Steelworkers
union is involved in an ongoing study to see if an employee
buyout of the Tembec paper mill would be feasible.
France:
Several employee buyouts at various stages, successfully
or not. New employee share plan for Schneider Electric.
It is remarkable that the three world's leading companies
in the heavy construction industry are French, with employees
owning 9% of Vinci, 18% of Bouygues and 33% of Eiffage.
Strategic position for employee ownership in Essilor. Strange
conflict about employee ownership in Total.
Italy:
Happy end with the transposition of the McCreevy's Directive
about shareholders rights in Italy – a success for Italian
employee shareholders' associations.
Kenya:
Equity Bank is set to establish an Employee Share Ownership
Scheme, 5% of the bank’s total shareholding will be released
to employees.
UK: Tories plan to use employee-owned co-operatives
to shake up public services reflects a realisation by politicians
and civil servants that employee-owned firms are not the
Soviet kolkhozes of lazy stereotype, but are valid forms
of commercial enterprise. Is John Lewis the best company
in Britain to work for? It is owned by its employees who
have a say in how it is run, and receive a share of the
profits. Transparency asked about the UK Employee Ownership
Index, showing that employee-owned companies outperform
those from the FTSE all-share index. Possible employee buyout
for Preston bus company.
USA:
Will employee ownership be the base of a new communitarianism?
ESOPs on the rise among small businesses. A new study shows
that, in the most recent economic recession, companies owned
by their employees through employee stock ownership plans
(ESOPs) demonstrated considerable resilience and performed
better than other companies in providing for workers' retirement
security, job creation, and revenue growth.
Zimbabwe:
Indigenisation Regulations encourage employee share ownership
schemes.
The full press review is available
on:
http://www.efesonline.org/PRESS
REVIEW/2010/March.htm
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A
political roadmap for employee ownership in Europe
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