Opinion/Guest column: Benefits for all under employee ownership

When my mother passed away, it fell to me to raise my much younger sibling. It was something I hadn't planned for and I didn't know how I would get by – let alone put money away for the future. Yet here I was, responsible for a child. So I had to find a way. That way found me when I was assigned to assist in a data-migration project facilitating a merger between my employer and Marlborough-based Web Industries. The project gave me the opportunity to meet people at all levels of the new company. The first thing that struck me was that everyone was personable and welcoming. Whether I was speaking to an operator or to the CEO – it didn't matter. Through my work on the project, I landed a job offer at Web. The workplace culture and the way employees interacted with each other made it an appealing opportunity. Then I got my offer letter, which noted that Web is owned by its employees via an employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP, a retirement plan that lets companies share ownership with the workers who help build it. I had never heard of an ESOP and had no idea how profoundly it would change my life. The first ESOP statement I got blew my mind. It was a year after I started and my balance was already more than my 401(k) after years of working. And it's kept growing each year, each statement providing a sense of security for me and my family I never thought possible. The retirement savings are important, of course, but to me the culture of working at a company where employees share in the wealth we help create stands out even more. Our company makes products that are critical to the manufacturing of aviation and medical diagnostic equipment. Most people will never know these critical items were made by workers who own their company. But because we're owners, we do everything we can to make sure our products are safe and reliable. The happier our customers are, the better we all do. For example, I helped switch our back-end tracking from lot number to package number to make looking up inventory for one of our major wire and cable products faster and easier. Employee ownership has been such a positive force for me that I wish more families could reap its benefits. Massachusetts has just 137 ESOPs, despite years of academic studies proving they boost worker wealth and increase retention and productivity. I'm such a believer that I volunteered to serve on the board of an organization working to grow the number of employee-owned businesses here in Massachusetts. And as we celebrate Labor Day, I'm hopeful we can make this year's holiday about more than barbecues and platitudes about hard work: Let's instead commit to building a country where all workers have a stake in the wealth they help create. That's why I'm excited Web has joined Expanding ESOPs, a growing coalition working to dramatically expand employee ownership across the country. I'm proud to add my voice to that effort. Most Americans only have about $1,000 saved for retirement. I was once in that boat. But thanks to employee ownership, I can look toward a future for my family without worry. When my mother passed away, I didn't know how I would support my brother. Becoming an owner gave me a way out, a path to security I hope many more Americans can walk in the years to come. Veronica Ortiz is the director of global customer service for Web Industries. She is based in Marlborough.