SEL Ranks 15th on List of Largest Employee-owned Companies in America

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Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL), a global leader in products and solutions that protect and control electric power systems, is the 15th largest 100 percent employee-owned company in the United States, according to the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO). SEL ranked 20th for companies that are at least 50 percent employee-owned.

The NCEO recently released its 2023 Employee Ownership 100, which ranks the largest majority employee-owned companies in the U.S. To be on the list, companies must be at least 50 percent employee-owned.

SEL has steadily moved up list, rising 29 spots since 2011. The ranking is based on the number of full- and part-time employees.

The Pullman, Washington-based manufacturer first transitioned to employee ownership through an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) in 1994 and became 100 percent employee-owned in 2009 as part of its long-term strategy for sustained growth, stability and customer focus.

An ESOP is a benefit plan where employees are given ownership interest in a company in the form of shares of stock that are held in trust until they leave the company or retire. A recent study by the NCEO found that ESOPs are “associated with 92 percent higher median household net wealth, 33 percent higher median income from wages, and 53 percent longer median job tenure.”

“There’s no better way to build a successful business than by giving employees a real stake in the company,” said Joey Nestegard, chief business officer at SEL. “The ESOP model is designed for long-term employee engagement, employment and relationships with customers. It’s a model focused on long-term decision making in the best interest of customers, employees, supplier partners and the communities where we do business. Employee ownership creates the kind of stability that helps a business weather storms and leads to long-term growth.”

The companies on the NCEO list employ more than 685,000 people worldwide.

NCEO is a nonprofit organization that conducts original research and shares information about employee ownership.