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- Advocacy
The Employee Ownership Action Network (EOAN) is a free-to-join, grassroots advocacy movement for anyone with a stake in ensuring employee ownership continues to grow and thrive in the US.
Does that sound like you?
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What Our Members Have to Say
“Membership in The ESOP Association is vital to an ESOP owned company. The advocacy and education services are invaluable and are not duplicated by any other organization.”
-David Kelly, CFO at Acadian Ambulance Service Inc.
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Featured Event
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The Employee Owned Conference, attended annually by more than 2,000 employee-owners, thought leaders, and professional advisors, is the largest ESOP conference in the world.
Upcoming events
- Resources
The #EO Solution
The ESOP Association and Project Equity have partnered to create state -by-state data that amplifies employee ownership as a common sense way to preserve businesses, strengthen jobs and build a more resilient post-pandemic economy.
ESOP Association Resources
Forming an ESOP - A New Video Series on Business Succession Planning
Hear from ESOP companies in multiple different industries, and their seasoned advisors, about what an ESOP is and if it’s right for you.
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- About TEA
What is an ESOP?
An ESOP is a retirement plan—but also a way of living and running a company. For insights on both technical and cultural aspects of these plans—which provide benefits to employee owners, the company, the community, and exiting owners—and links to additional resources, see our web page titled What is an ESOP?
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The ESOP Association
ESOP Association Resources
Sep. 22
The ESOP Association (TEA), the national trade association representing companies with Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) and ESOP professionals, today exercised rights under the Administrative Procedure Act to petition the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to undertake a long-delayed rulemaking essential to the formation and ongoing operation of ESOPs.
Jul. 21
Ted Becker Wins Lifetime Service Award
Washington, DC, July 19, 2021 – Theodore “Ted” Becker, Partner at McDermott Will & Emery in Chicago, has been awarded the ESOP community’s highest honor, The 2021 Lifetime Service Award. The Lifetime Service Award honors individuals who have made a significant, long-term contribution to employee ownership and the ESOP community.
Washington, DC, July 19, 2021 – Theodore “Ted” Becker, Partner at McDermott Will & Emery in Chicago, has been awarded the ESOP community’s highest honor, The 2021 Lifetime Service Award. The Lifetime Service Award honors individuals who have made a significant, long-term contribution to employee ownership and the ESOP community.
Jul. 02
Washington, DC, June 21, 2021 - Jessica Molnar, Intern Architect at Wiley|Wilson, based in Lynchburg, VA has been named The ESOP Association’s 2021 Employee Owner of the Year. This award recognizes a non-management employee owner who provides a positive influence in the company and participates in the company’s employee ownership activities and the activities of The ESOP Association (TEA). It is one of the highest honors that TEA bestows.
Jul. 02
Washington, DC, June 21, 2021 - Recology, a resource recovery ESOP company based in San Francisco, CA, has won The ESOP Association’s highest corporate honor—the ESOP Company of the Year Award. The award honors a company that actively participates in the employee ownership community and that demonstrates a dedication to The ESOP Association’s vision of employee participation, wealth creation, and individual dignity and worth.
Jan. 20
The ESOP Association looks forward to working with President Joe Biden and his incoming Administration to make employee ownership available to the vast majority of privately employed Americans. The ESOP Association believes that employee ownership strengthens our free enterprise economy, increases productivity through greater employee participation and satisfaction, and maximizes human potential by enhancing self-worth, dignity, and the well-being of working Americans.
Jan. 08
We are encouraged by news reports that President-elect Joseph Biden will nominate Isabel Guzman to lead the Small Business Administration (SBA). As the head of California’s Office of the Small Business Advocate, Guzman has gone on the record stating the important role ESOPs play in helping our nation retain millions of businesses that might otherwise close when their Baby Boomer owners retire—as many are expected to do in the next eight years.
Jan. 06
The ESOP Association congratulates Boston Mayor Marty Walsh on his reported nomination to the position of Secretary of Labor. Mayor Walsh has a history of engaging ESOP companies and encouraging employee ownership, and if he is confirmed, The Association looks forward to working with him and the Biden Administration to advance employee ownership.
Resource, Press Releases
Jan. 21
For more than 28 years, Employee Ownership Month has been an opportunity for ESOP (employee stock ownership plan) companies across the nation to educate employee owners and the public about the undeniable benefits of employee ownership for employees, their companies, their communities, and the nation.