Impact Stories
At RMEOC, we believe that workplace democracy isn’t just about ownership—it’s also about how we care for one another, handle conflict, and make decisions together. That’s why we’re proud to support Spring Up, an organization building the future of liberatory work cultures through intentional practice and shared leadership.Their 6-month Shared Leadership Cohort—a deep dive into… Continue reading Spring Up’s Flagship Cohort is Open for Applications
Colorful. Liberating. Rooted in consent, accountability, and transformation.That’s Spring Up—a Denver-based, majority Black and queer worker cooperative founded in 2013 and collectively owned by nine members. Spring Up teaches and practices the skills to be free together through generative conflict, shared power, and collective decision-making. Rooted in a deep commitment to liberation and care, their… Continue reading Where Values Meet Capital: Spring Up’s Journey with Non-Extractive Financing
RMEOC is a member of American Sustainable Business Council, and as we prepare to discuss employee ownership with Colorado legislators, we wanted to share ASBC’s recent white paper on worker ownership. Learn the facts. Ever-increasing economic inequality has convinced millions of Americans the U.S. economy is failing them. Congress can reverse this decline and rebuild the middle… Continue reading Reduce Economic Inequality with Worker Ownership
New conversionsRhode Island coffeehouse Custom House Coffee became employee owned through a direct purchase plan. Direct purchase plans do not have the same tax benefits of ESOPs, but since they are not governed by ERISA, they are easier to establish. “Mastin said that as soon as he floated the idea to his employees of buying shares, their outlook… Continue reading March 2017 Employee Ownership News
Colorado Tech Worker Co-ops: An IntroductionRMEOC had the opportunity to talk with co-owners of three local tech worker coops based in Boulder and Denver. These values-oriented tech companies design and build software for websites and applications. They are friends and allies who often collaborate with each other. We’ll add to the profiles below as we… Continue reading Colorado Tech Worker Coops: An Introduction
Prairie is Pleased to Announce the Sale of Grace Manufacturing to an Employee Stock Ownership Plan! OAKBROOK TERRACE, IL – February 6, 2019 – Prairie Capital Advisors, Inc. (“Prairie”), a leading middle-market investment bank, acted as financial advisor to Grace Manufacturing in the sale of the company to an employee stock ownership plan. Founded in 1966, Grace Manufacturing is… Continue reading Prairie Capital Advisors’ Recent Transaction | Grace Manufacturing
You can read the full story on the Colorado Sun Ramon Lucas Ramon’s journey began in the small village of Chichnan, in Santa Eulalia, Guatemala. For the past 20 years, Ramon has called the United States his home, but his path to this new life was far from easy. His story is one of perseverance,… Continue reading A Worker Ownership Solution for Colorado’s Failed Mushroom Farm
Recently, I spent a mid-morning near Colfax and Colorado, going door-to-door to meet local business owners and spread the word about the virtues of employee ownership. As I moved eastwards, from Steele street across Colorado and towards Monaco, I passed dozens of shops, talked to numerous owners, and learned a powerful truth: Colfax has two… Continue reading Two Faces of Colfax
“When everyone shares, everyone benefits,” says Fawn Romero, ASA at Prairie Capital Advisors. ESOP valuation and advisory are some of the services provided by Prairie, which has been an ESOP itself for 10 years as of January 1, 2022. According to its website, Prairie’s “ESOP provides qualified employees to participate in a plan with over… Continue reading How one ESOP spreads the wealth to other ESOPs – A Conversation with Fawn from Prairie Capital Advisors
Prepared by David R. Johanson, Esq., Douglas A. Rubel, Esq., Rachel J. Markun, Esq., and Robert S. Thompson, Esq. On September 17, 2021, Hawkins Parnell & Young, LLP secured a complete victory for its clients Brian J. Bowers, Dexter C. Kubota, and Bowers + Kubota Consulting, Inc. (B+KC) in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act… Continue reading Hawkins Parnell Wins Significant ERISA Trial Against U.S. Government for Bowers + Kubota Consulting, Inc. and its Founding Shareholders in ESOP Valuation and Transaction Case
My grandfather, Lambert Berger, was a businessman in Johnstown, CO. He believed that businesses should support their communities, and communities should support their businesses. His belief that “we're all in this together” helped create a thriving local economy in my hometown.Today, I work to elevate and perpetuate his legacy by helping employee-owners who are supporting… Continue reading Why I Give: Jen Briggs
Colorado Gives Day provides Coloradans with the opportunity to exercise two of the “better angels of our nature,” gratitude and generosity. A recent visit to my pharmacy presented me with a vivid example of why I should donate to The Rocky Mountain Employee Ownership Center during the 2021 drive. My response will be to contribute… Continue reading “They won’t allow it” by Bill Kirton
For Erica Maldonado and Diego Pons, co-founder-owners of the San Luis Valley (SLV) Language Justice Cooperative, being bilingual wasn’t always a good thing. This sentiment changed, however, when they learned to leverage their bilingualism in a way that advanced them professionally and allowed them to fulfil a need within their community. Pons and Maldonado met… Continue reading The San Luis Valley Language Justice Cooperative: Empowering people through language
More and more people are recognizing that our current economic system benefits a small few at the expense of many, especially working-class communities and communities of color. What many people don’t know is that there’s a better way already taking place that represents a path forward to create a more just and sustainable economy — an economy… Continue reading An Economy That Works For Everyone: Employee Ownership & The Story of RMEOC
How popular is employee ownership?Whether in the form of an ESOP or co-op, employee ownership is more common than you might think.According to a 2018 article in the Harvard Business Review, about 10% of Americans hold equity stakes in their workplaces. That accounts for the upwards of 14 million employees who are vested employee-owners.(Colorado alone is home… Continue reading 33 Well-Known Companies Creating Equity Through Employee Ownership
In October 2020, the Aspen Institute hosted a webinar aimed at addressing the question: Can employee share ownership improve racial and gender wealth equity? Speakers from worker cooperatives, think tanks, universities, and public radio came together to confront the systemic inequality that workers at the bottom end of the opportunity scale face in this economy. “Broadening opportunities to participate… Continue reading Building Racial & Gender Equity Through Employee Ownership
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