TORONTO, Apr. 19, 2024 – Social Capital Partners welcomes the federal government’s decision to explore options to unlock the potential of employee ownership trusts (EOTs) as part of Canada’s economic recovery. This is a first step toward making broad-based employee ownership a more significant part of our economy.  Social Capital Partners produced Building an Employee Ownership Economy in October 2020, a report calling for the establishment of EOTs in Canada, as a way to grow Canada’s comparatively low levels of employee ownership.

“There is a large body of research from around the world that points to employee ownership trusts as a powerful tool to reduce wealth inequality, support business succession, protect local jobs, and promote economic resilience,” says Jon Shell, managing partner of Social Capital Partners. “It’s great to see the government recognize that employee ownership could be part of rebuilding a more inclusive, more resilient economy.”

In the US and the UK, employee-owned companies grow faster, pay better, are less prone to lay-offs or bankruptcies in economic downturns, and are more likely to keep jobs in local economies. Due to public policy that encourages their use, EOTs are a popular structure for business succession in those countries, where they have generated significant wealth for front-line employees. EOTs are common in the US, where 14 million employees own $1.4 trillion in shares at over 6,000 companies. Since their introduction in the UK in 2014, they have become increasingly popular, with almost 100 companies becoming employee-owned in 2019 alone. Canada does not have a business structure comparable to the employee ownership trust.

“There is a large body of research from around the world that points to employee ownership trusts as a powerful tool to reduce wealth inequality, support business succession, protect local jobs and promote economic resilience.”

A recent survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) suggests significant interest among Canadian business owners in employee ownership. Fifty-nine percent of respondents were either strongly or somewhat in favour of introducing policies similar to the US and UK, and 53% said they were more likely to sell to their employees if such a policy were introduced.

“Canadian business owners are very community-oriented.  We think employee ownership in Canada can be even more successful than the US and UK with the right policies in place,” said Shell. “That would mean more Canadian companies staying Canadian-owned.”

Canada’s current regulatory environment makes selling to employees very difficult. “As a business owner who believes in the power of employee ownership, I’m really excited to see it in the budget. It’s been very difficult, and taken a very long time, for me to sell some of my company to my employees. It should be a lot easier,” said Peter Deitz, Co-Founder and Board Chair of Grantbook. His comments echo those of Geoff Smith, CEO of EllisDon, one of Canada’s largest employee-owned companies, in a video he posted this past month encouraging the government to implement employee ownership trusts.

“Given the benefits, a made-in Canada approach to broad-based employee ownership should be a priority for policymakers that are looking to strengthen Canada’s economic recovery and increase the well-being of Canadians over the long-term,” says Shell.


Share with a friend

Related reading

Mark Carney’s economic agenda misses something vital | Toronto Star

Prime Minister Mark Carney's campaign focused on economic growth and sovereignty. He talked a lot about how Trump wants to "break us so he can own us," and yet, so far, details of an ownership agenda are pretty thin. The reality is that Canadians cannot be "masters in our own home" if the home is owned by a U.S. hedge fund. Broadly distributed, local Canadian ownership of our economy and our assets must be a central part of our economic growth strategy. In the Toronto Star, SCP CEO Matthew Mendelsohn writes that he sees some early, positive signs of such a plan coming from the federal government and spells out what a real ownership agenda that serves "the owners of Canada" would look like.

Close up of acoustic guitar

HBS Case | Taylor Guitars: Making Employee Ownership Work the Taylor Way

After a successful transition to 100% employee ownership, Taylor Guitars' experience is now the subject of a Harvard Business School case. Read more about how their experience brings the evidence to life: "Employee-owned firms grow faster, default less often, are far more resilient in economic downturns and pay their people more, even before you factor in the wealth-generating effects of ownership. It’s also a great business succession option as it lets owners exit for fair prices while protecting the people and communities they care deeply about.”

Now #hiring: Executive Assistant to the CEO

Social Capital Partners is seeking a highly organized and proactive Executive Assistant (EA) to the CEO who thrives in a fast-paced, mission-oriented environment. While this is a true EA position focused on keeping the CEO and team operating at a high level, it is also a unique opportunity to engage in a wide range of stimulating policy and strategy conversations, including the chance to conduct research, contribute to policy initiatives and engage with influential leaders in the field.

Skip to content