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MAIN
RECENT PROGRESS OF THE EUROPEAN INSTITUTIONS
FOR EMPLOYEE OWNERSHIP AND FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION
Employee
ownership and employee financial participation will develop
better and faster when the European Union will affirm its
political will. EFES was set up to encourage the European
institutions in that way. However, the institutions of the
European Union are numerous and complex. The progress is real.
Unfortunately, it is still slow, compared to other regions
of the world (Australia, the USA, South Africa, India, etc.)
• Recent
progress
• EFES action
• European
Parliament
• Council
of Ministers of the European Union
• Presidency
of the European Union
• European
Commission
• European
Foundation in Dublin
• European
Economic and Social Committee
• RECENT PROGRESS
24.05.2007:
New EFES call to the Governments of the European Union (see
below)
21.12.2006: Question
by Mrs Catherine Stihler, MEP, to the European Commission
21.12.2006: Expert
report: A European Commission's disaster
11.01.2006: European
Commission proposals to make it easier for shareholders to
exercise their rights within the EU
24.02.2005: Question
by Mrs Catherine Stihler, Member of the European Parliament,
and answer by the European Commission
17.09.2004: Report
of the High Level Experts Group for the European Commission
(President Jean-Baptiste de Foucauld)
09.06.2004: Bertie
Ahern, chairing the EU as Irish Prime Minister, answers to
EFES call
03.06.2004: Pat
Cox, President of the European Parliament answers to EFES
call
31.05.2004: EFES
call to the European Parliament, the European Commission and
all Governments of the European Union
New
EFES call to the Governments of the European Union (May
2007)
A recent study funded by the European Commission enlightened
the fact that 89% of all 2.000 widest European Groups (29
millions employees) have employee share ownership and 83%
have plans to develop it more.
These Groups consider employee share ownership as one of
the best ways for aligning employees and shareholders interests,
motivating people, improving corporate performances and
giving people the chance to share better corporate results.
They are used to offer annual share plans to their employees
in all possible countries.
Unfortunately, the main obstacle in development of their
common human resources policy is the lack of proper legislation
in several Member States. This situation causes discrimination
between their employees - people from various countries,
and put a brake on their development and investments abroad.
This is why we would like to trigger discussion about the
most effective legislation. Our aim is to encourage all
governments to introduce a dedicated legislation, allowing
the following employee share plans, as the most used across
the world, in the European Union and the United States as
well:
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan,
possibly annual
- Discount rate 20%, free of tax
and social security, up to 10% of annual gross salary (or
5.000 Euro annually)
- Blockage period: 3 years
(through deferred stocks, blocked stocks or options with
vesting period).
EFES
call to the European Parliament, the European Commission
and all Governments of the European Union, 31.05.2004
In 1998, when the European Federation of Employee Share
Ownership was set up, it was said that some 10% of American
employees held shares of their enterprise; they are now
23,3%. Some weeks ago, the Australian Government launched
a programme to double employee share ownership in Australia,
from 5,5% of employees today to 11% in 2009.
Today, performances studies have multiplied and we can now
consider with no doubt that when it is practiced in good
conditions, employee ownership brings to enterprises a gain
of performances estimated at 2% of additional annual growth
on average. On the European Union scale, this would represent
millions of additional jobs. In this way the development
of employee ownership could be an important factor for the
Lisbon Strategy.
Today, we are far from a European awareness and a strong
mobilisation. Scepticism or indifference still dominate
in many European countries. The contrast is obvious in comparison
with the United States, Australia and other parts of the
world. A political willingness of the European Union has
still to crystallize.
We recommend that Europe gives itself a voluntary objective
of industrial policy : reach 10 % of employee ownership
in the whole European Union in 2010. In this way, a whole
combination of means have to be implemented at the Union
level, in the Member States and in the regions.
We particularly insist on the followings :
1. The implementation of a community organ (agency ? institute
? committee ?) for the promotion and the development of
employee ownership. In this way, we applaud the proposal
of the European Commission Experts Group, chaired by Jean-Baptiste
de Foucauld, to install a European Committee for Financial
Participation of Workers.
2. An adapted legislation must be applied in each country
of the European Union. In this way too, we applaud the proposals
of the Experts Group of the Commission chaired by Jean-Baptiste
de Foucauld.
3. Enterprise transfer and salvation of failing enterprises
are situations where employee ownership has proved its worth
(the Spanish sociedades laborales being a good example).
Employee buyouts schemes should get particular support.
These formulas are not only to be supported for themselves
but also because they are favourable to the diffusion and
promotion of employee ownership, in all enterprises of the
Union's countries.
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