Publix is ranked as the top company on the Employee Ownership 100, a list compiled by the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO) of the 100 largest U.S. companies with employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs). The list represents a broad range of industries.
Publix is ranked No. 1 with 182,500 associates, while the No. 2 company has only 21,000 employees. Publix has been at the top of the list since it was first released in 2005. To be on the list, companies have to be at least 50 percent owned by an ESOP or other kinds of stock ownership plans in which at least 50 percent of full-time employees are eligible to participate.
The list supports the importance of employee ownership in the U.S. economy. Companies with ESOPs grow about 2.5 percent faster annually in sales, employment and productivity, and provide two times more in total retirement assets as non-ESOP companies.
NCEO is a private, nonprofit research organization with more than 30 years of expertise in providing resources on employee ownership.
