Fifty by Fifty is catalyzing a movement to scale up employee ownership
Our goal: 50 million employee owners in the US by 2050
An initiative of The Democracy Collaborative, Fifty by Fifty is aimed at creating a more inclusive economy through employee ownership. Our goal is to catalyze a movement with the knowledge, resources, and skills to grow the number of employee owners in the U.S. to 50 million Americans by 2050.
The latest employee ownership news
Reflections on Barriers to Growing Employee Ownership
Marjorie Kelly, co-founder of Fifty by Fifty and a leading authority on the democratic economy, talks with Bret Keisling, host of The ESOP Podcast.
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Senators Introduce Employee Ownership Legislation
A brief overview of legislative proposals to lift some of the barriers to growing employee ownership
Continue Reading Senators Introduce Employee Ownership Legislation
Apis & Heritage Legacy Fund Targets Racial Wealth Gap
Announcing its first close at $30 million, the fund plans to acquire about 8 firms with majority workforces of color to transition to employee ownership.
Continue Reading Apis & Heritage Legacy Fund Targets Racial Wealth Gap
Dick May and Chris Mackin: A $100 billion loan guarantee program for employee ownership would be transformational
A federal loan guarantee program of $100 billion per year would permit policymakers to grasp how employee ownership could truly address the problem of economic inequality on a national level.
International Employee Ownership Organizations Endorse Corporate Responsibility
Growing momentum to put social purpose at the center of employee ownership firms.
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Workers at Cooperatives Report High Job Satisfaction and Community Engagement
Dataset from first national survey of co-op workers publicly available through Democracy at Work Institute by Adria Scharf Over the years, worker cooperatives have sparked the imagination and hope of many who dream of a more just alternative to the capitalist employment relationship. In a cooperative, workers own and control the business democratically—in contrast with…
Continue Reading Workers at Cooperatives Report High Job Satisfaction and Community Engagement
Bruce Dobb & Tomás Durán: Overcoming the “Equity Injection” Obstacle to Employee Ownership
The reauthorization of the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) could offer a timely answer to the down payment dilemma.
SSBCI Technical Assistance Funds Could Support Outreach & Education
State Centers for Employee Ownership could ramp up their education and outreach to business owners, business service providers, and state leaders with SSBCI technical assistance funds.
Continue Reading SSBCI Technical Assistance Funds Could Support Outreach & Education
The State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI): An Opportunity to Grow Employee Ownership?
Could SSBCI 2.0 provide the capital to begin to significantly redistribute business ownership?
“It takes a job to get out of poverty but it takes assets to stay out of poverty. Ownership shares increase in value over time, generating wealth and security.”
—Fifty by Fifty cofounder Marjorie Kelly
Employee ownership offers a solution to the vast income and wealth inequality that is undermining America’s economy.
GOOD FOR EMPLOYEES
- WAGES: Employee owners earn average wages 5 to 12 percent higher than employees in conventional firms.
- WEALTH: The net worth of employee owners aged 28 to 34 is 92 percent higher than for non-employee owners.
- RETIREMENT SAVINGS: The average retirement savings for an ESOP employee is $170,000, twice the national average.
GOOD FOR BUSINESS
- TURNOVER: Employee engagement is higher and turnover is lower at employee-owned companies.
- GROWTH: Transitions to employee ownership increase productivity by more than 4 percent.
- STABILITY: Employee owners are one-fourth as likely to be laid off and their companies go bankrupt less frequently.
GOOD FOR COMMUNITIES
- JOBS: Employee ownership saves local jobs, because companies that are owned by their employees are far less likely to leave their communities.
- LOCAL WEALTH: Employee ownership keeps wealth circulating in local communities.
GOOD FOR OWNERS
- LEGACY: When business owners sell their businesses to their employees, they can keep their legacy alive for generations to come.
- SAVINGS: Entrepreneurs and family owners can realize the value the business has built while enjoying substantial tax savings.
- RESPONSIBILITY: Business founders and families can find ready buyers in employees, avoiding sale to those who would dismantle the business.
