Our Share: Employee Ownership as a Wealth Sharing Tool

In this course, you will learn about a well-researched tool for building a more equitable economy: “employee ownership.” You will learn what it is, how it differs from traditional business ownership models, and the forms it can take. You will learn how employee ownership can share wealth and profits with employees--while making businesses more productive. You will learn what the research shows about the benefits of this tool for employees, retiring business owners, and the economy. Whatever your interest in the topic, you’ll find information here that you can use. If you are a business owner or entrepreneur, you will learn why employee ownership could be a solution that benefits you and your employees. If you are an employee of a business, you will learn how you could gain an ownership stake in the business and what that would mean. If you are a student, this course is relevant to numerous fields including human resources management, strategy, entrepreneurship, organizations, history, economics, community economic development, labor studies, sociology, and more. If you are simply someone interested in tested real-world solutions to economic inequality, or concerned about social justice, this course is for you as well. By the end of the course, you will know key questions to ask to determine whether employee ownership may be suitable for your workplace. This course was developed by the Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing with support from the Beyster Foundation for Enterprise Development

• Understand how businesses can share ownership and profits with employees
• Identify new options for business succession
• Recognize differences between employee ownership and traditional models
• Explore forms employee ownership can take
• Evaluate benefits for employees and business owners

• Basic computer and internet skills
• Ability to read course instructions in English and complete practice activities