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Worker-Owned
Firms
One of the
most promising trends in the complex of corporate restructurings
is the emergence of employee participation in the ownership
of capital within their own companies. More than 15 million
employees working in over 16,000 companies own around 8 percent
of all corporate equity. By far the largest component of this
growing movement is the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)
of which there are over 11,000 across the country. About 1,900
companies—among them some of the largest in the nation—are
now majority worker-owned.
For a variety
of reasons ranging from altruistic owners to advantageous
tax breaks and corporate defense against hostile takeovers,
employee ownership plans have proven popular since their introduction
into tax codes in the 1970s. Some plans involve more real
ownership than others. Some are merely a replacement of less
flexible employee benefit plans, while others are a genuine
tool for employee participation in the rewards of their work.
An important
issue, of course, is whether ownership brings with it true
decision making and control—the most innovative such firms
embrace democratic control while helping to stabilize a local
job base within a community.
A number
of important issues bear examination: What is the correlation
between increased productivity and employee ownership and
participation? What are the potential boons from employee
ownership to broad economic performance and the possible increase
in economic equity? What is the link between worker ownership
and environmental or social value production and development?
Does workplace democracy translate into better citizenship
in the community?
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