President-elect Donald Trump has not said anything we are aware of about employee ownership during his political career, so it is difficult to know what approach he will take to the issue. Many of his former advisors and other people with similar views were involved with Project 2025, however, although he and his campaign have distanced themselves from it. Project 2025's proposed 180-day transition playbook, Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise, states (pp. 610-11):
“Improving Access to Employee Stock Ownership Plans. Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) are ERISA-covered employee retirement savings plans that allow employees to receive compensation in the form of equity in their employer business. These arrangements enable employees to formally participate as investors in how their employers’ businesses are run. And they also align employer–employee incentives by giving employees a greater financial stake in the success of their employers. With over half of small businesses owned by business owners over the age of 55, ESOPs also create advantageous succession opportunities that support the continuity of local businesses and regional economic development. Finally, ESOPs can enable greater investment returns for employees. However, ESOPs have to date lacked clear rules under ERISA that recognize their unique structure and benefits, and this opacity can serve as a barrier to employers considering adopting ESOPs.”
The document goes on to recommend that the Department of Labor “should make it easier for employers to offer ESOPs by providing clear regulations for ESOP valuation and fiduciary conduct that encourages the participation of employee beneficiaries in corporate governance, while recognizing the importance of financial diversification for retirement security.”
However, the document also offers the "alternative view" that "[w]hile ESOPs can be a beneficial part of a worker’s and family’s savings, some conservatives believe that the government should not favor one form of investment over another or make it harder for families to have a diversified investment portfolio."