Employee Ownership Blog

Corey Rosen

Court Rules Decisively Against DOL in ESOP Valuation Case

In Walsh v. Bowers, No. 1:18-cv-00155-SOM-WRP (D.C. Hawaii, September 17, 2021), a district court decisively ruled in favor of the trustee and the board of directors of the ESOP company Bowers+Kubota in an ESOP valuation case. The judge ruled that the DOL’s valuation "rests on errors" because its expert failed to follow standard valuation practices, used inaccurate and incomplete information about the company’s finances, and improperly compared the price the ESOP paid to a very preliminary lower offer from another company. The court noted that the preliminary offer was likely just a negotiating tool, analogizing that  “an individual who makes an offer of $15,000 for a used luxury car with a Blue Book value of $40,000 does not, by virtue of making a ‘lowball’ offer that is never accepted, tend to establish that the car is worth only $15,000.”

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Loren Rodgers

NCEO Article Encourages States to Create Employee Ownership Programs

An August 9 article by NCEO founder Corey Rosen on the website Governing, Employee-Owned Companies Could Use a Government Nudge, argues for state and local programs to provide outreach and technical assistance to help educate business owners about employee ownership. Rosen cites extensive research to make the case that promoting employee ownership is one of the most cost-effective economic development policies these entities can pursue. The article provides an overview of efforts in several states and local governments, with a major focus on Colorado (see our July 26 community conversation, How Colorado is Taking the Lead on Employee Ownership). Governing is a prominent website (formerly a print magazine) for state and local legislators and executives.

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Loren Rodgers

Get the Most Out of the Fall ESOP Forum

You can get a big picture overview of all things related to making an ESOP company work well at the Fall ESOP Forum, but most people I talk with have one aspect of ESOPs at the top of mind. We structured the Fall Forum with four tracks so you can be confident that you can focus on building your knowledge and getting ideas you can implement. Get our Fall Forum curriculum guide (PDF) to help choose the best sessions to attend based on your areas of interest or job focus. See the Fall Forum program for a searchable list of sessions and speakers; you also can filter by track. If you haven't registered yet, be sure to register now.

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Timothy Garbinsky

What Does It Mean to Achieve in 2021?

Every year around this time, I get excited about our Fall ESOP Forum, taking place this year from September 22 to 24 online. It serves as both a welcome reprieve from the late summer/early autumn doldrums and an augmentation of Employee Ownership Month, which falls directly on its heels. It also provides a yearly opportunity to take stock of the past year while looking forward to what the upcoming year might have in store for us.

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Loren Rodgers

Using Employee Ownership to Recruit New Employees

Businesses across the country are struggling to find, hire, and retain the employees they need, so this finding from the General Social Survey (reported on in our blog) should be welcome news to everyone responsible for recruiting at an employee-owned company: “Democrat or Republican, female or male, black or white, union or non-union, a majority of respondents said they prefer to work for a company with employee share ownership.”

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