Best New Employee Share Plan OFX Limited
The company offers an ‘all employee (restricted stock) share plan’ where the take-up rate has been 100%. The plan is based on the Australian ‘Tax Exempt’ Plan (with provisions made for non-Australians to join). OFX’s new employee share plan arrangements will ensure that all OFX employees have ‘skin in the game’ via share ownership by the end of 2018.
The share plan will evolve into enabling ‘share purchase’ arrangements in future years, covering the 500 employees across Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, UK, USA and New Zealand. Well done to the OFX team on such a great achievement!
Best SME/Succession Plan Redgum Cleaning Cooperative
Redgum started business in the cleaning industry in February 2018 as an employee owned cooperative. Based on the cooperative structure and principles, governance is via one member one vote, with each member taking up an equal share holding.
The cooperative applies fair work standards and is entering a phase of rapid growth with the number of members expected to double by the end of the year. The judging panel were impressed with Redgum’s commitment to providing sustainable and fair work to all members. All the best in the future!
(Picture unavailable at time of publishing).
Most Effective and Innovative Communications Program Ricegrowers Limited (SunRice)
There are two employee share plan options under SunRice’s “myShare Plan’ program and employees can participate in one or both. The innovative on-line share plan offer and communications program enables employees to play an integral part in SunRice’s workplace strategy.
SunRice has created cross functional teams which are responsible and accountable for setting strategy, objectives and contributions for achieving the strategy – which includes innovation, meeting ‘business as usual’ targets and changes required to meet long term targets. The judging panel also loved the slogan “Work for Success, Share in Success”. Congratulations!
Best Performance in Fostering Long Term Share Ownership (Less than 1,000 employees) Northern Star Resources Limited
The Northen Star Resources team have created a share plan that provides recognition for effort. Importantly, it builds employee ownership into the business to align with the company’s shareholders. The plan has been in place since 2016 with a huge take-up rate of 95% amongst their nearly 1000 employees. Congratulations on such a fantastic ESS!
Best Performance in Fostering Long Term Share Ownership (More than 1,000 employees) Computershare Limited
The primary objective of Computershare’s plan is to increase employee engagement, with retention and productivity as the key drivers for developing employee share plans with a long term focus. To ensure such long term employee ownership, Computershare offers two broad-based plans in Australia, with the take-up rate amongst all 1600 staff being 64%.
The EOA judges were particularly impressed to see that for each plan Computershare matched employee contributions up to a certain amount.
