COG

Homestead Discussion


[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Fwd: Disclosure of employee share owners



>>From sturnbull@mba1963.hbs.edu  Sat Sep 25 02:47:54 1999
>X-BPC-Relay-Envelope-From: sturnbull@mba1963.hbs.edu 
>X-BPC-Relay-Sender-Host: m5.c2.telstra-mm.net.au [24.192.3.20]
>X-BPC-Relay-Info: Message delivered as CC or BCC.
>X-Sender: sturnbull@mail.mpx.com.au
>X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Pro Version 4.1 
>Date: Sat, 25 Sep 1999 16:45:22 +1000
>To: rerailer@earthlink.net, Norm Kurland <thirdway@cesj.org>,
>        MYERSFLAT <MYERSFLAT@aol.com>, dbinns <dbinns@fed.org>,
>        SCWPeace <SCWPeace@aol.com>, "OWNCO@aol.com" <OWNCO@aol.com>,
>        markreiners <markreiners@hotmail.com>,
>        mharrington <mharrington@milken-inst.org>, CURE <CURE@publicgood.com>,
>        CVEHORN <CVEHORN@imf.org>, rsmiley <rsmiley@comnett.net>,
>        info <info@fmcenter.org>, NETGROWTH <NETGROWTH@aol.com>,
>        mjnaughton <mjnaughton@stthomas.edu>,
>        garrydavis <garrydavis@hotmail.com>, hermesn <hermesn@helpnet.org>,
>        hbw <hbw@pixi.com>, banneker <banneker@progress.org>,
>        geonomist <geonomist@juno.com>, asky <asky@sirius.com>,
>        IPFA <IPFA@earthlink.net>, mali1610 <mali1610@bangla.net>,
>        thirdway <thirdway@dircon.co.uk>, Rhashford <Rhashford@aol.com>,
>        rshakes <rshakes@globalnet.co.uk>, lgranados <lgranados@mwe.com>,
>        rludwig <rludwig@lgklaw.com>, centbur <centbur@juno.com>,
>        crosen <crosen@nceo.org>, SpitzleyD <SpitzleyD@state.mi.us>,
>        lorned <lorned@attcanada.net>, dmoore <dmoore@cybersol.com>,
>        db <db@infoburst.cc>, billperk <billperk@midwest.net>,
>        jtruss <jtruss@syntegrity.com>, rlgcohen <rlgcohen@erols.com>,
>        "CT.06423" <CT.06423@aol.com>, Hadlyme <Hadlyme@aol.com>,
>        "jane.darista" <jane.darista@snet.net.Jane.D'Arista>,
>        kelsoin <kelsoin@hooked.net>, NMhermes <NMhermes@aol.com>,
>        "Majordomo@cog.kent.edu" <Majordomo@cog.kent.edu>,
>        Dan Bell <dbell@kent.edu>, Homestead <Homestead@cog.kent.edu>,
>        Deborah Groban Olson <dgo@esoplaw.com>,
>        Barry Randall <EOpriv@cog.kent.edu>,
>        Thomas Brandt <tbrandt@dbedt.hawaii.gov>
>From: Shann Turnbull <sturnbull@mba1963.hbs.edu>
>Subject: Disclosure of employee share owners
>Cc: jeffgates@mindspring.com, "kwilde@magi.com" <kwilde@magi.com>
>
>Dear Richard
>
>Thank you for your note.  I support your argument that all publicly traded
>corporations should make public who are their owners and controllers.
>However, this issue if far wider than the concerns of employee owners. 
>
>It is quite unconscionable for any government to allow security exchanges
>not to disclose the identity of the contra parties before a trade is
>executed.  A basic rule of doing business is to know who you are dealing
>with!  In past years share traders at least knew an individual who was
>their stockbroker but now they have been replaced by computers. 
>
>Without disclosure of shareolder identity, corporations and their directors
>do not know to who they owe a fiduciary duty.  What is the use of the law
>making directors accountable to shareholders when they do not know who are
>the beneficial owners behind nominee and trustee companies, etc?  As you
>state, shareholders also want to know are the other owners if we are to
>create what Jeff Gates calls "connected capitalism".
>
>Electronic trading now makes it practical for all those participating in
>the ownership and/or control of a security to be disclosed to the
>buyer/seller before a trade is executed in the same way internet brokers
>show market depth.  That is, the web page discloses the number of parties
>willing to buy/sell a security at a given price before a trade is executed.
> If buyers or sellers who have "a related party interest" in the stock like
>employees, directors, etc. were identified in this disclosure then the
>market could directly monitor insider trading to facilitate self-regulation
>instead of relying on the Stock Exchange or government regulators, etc.  
>
>No investor should be placed in the position of not knowing that they are
>buying a share from a insider or selling a share to an insider.  Big
>investors do not want such disclosure because their actions can move the
>market and make it difficult for them to take advantage of small investors
>who cannot more the market and/or who are not insiders!  But this is an
>argument for full disclosure, not non-disclosure to protect the interests
>of market movers and/or insiders.
>
>Employees are now the largest block of shareholders in a number of the
>largest Australian companies but this is not disclosed to the public or
>even to the employees as it is the directors that typically vote the stock
>to further their agenda.  Disclosure would be a first step is getting the
>vote passed through to employees to obtain the benefits of participation in
>control as well as ownership.
>
>Regards
>
>Shann
>
>
>
>At 10:28 PM 24/9/1999 -0700, Richard D. Foley wrote:
>>
>>X-Mozilla-Status2: 00000000
>>Message-ID: <37EC520B.CCC3E5DE@earthlink.net>
>>Date: Fri, 24 Sep 1999 21:39:49 -0700
>>From: "Richard D. Foley" <rerailer@earthlink.net>
>>Reply-To: rerailer@earthlink.net
>>Organization: TFG, Inc
>>X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.51 (Macintosh; U; PPC)
>>X-Accept-Language: en
>>MIME-Version: 1.0
>>To: Thomas Brandt <tbrandt@dbedt.hawaii.gov>
>>Subject: Re: Kurland v. Turnbull
>>References: <9909249382.AA938225632@mail.dbedt>
>>Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; 
>>x-mac-creator="4D4F5353"
>>Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
>>
>>Dear Thomas,
>>
>>I saw your question to Norm and thought that this was a good time for me
>>to bring forward a small idea.  Perhaps this is not the exact format or
>>place, as I am not quite sure of how this discussion system works.  I've
>>know Norm for a long time and support his work.  I'll soon be sending in
>>my personal data, but for now I think that Norm will vouch for me.
>>
>>Let me start by asking a few simple questions.  What is the true extent
>>of existing employee ownership?  Ok, I know there are a lot of guesses
>>and estimates, but is there any reason why this important information
>>must remain only an estimate?  What difference would knowing make?  How
>>would the dynamic change between management and labor if everyone knew
>>that the employees combined ownership constituted the largest block in
>>the company?  How much pressure to move to an esop structure would build
>>if the rank and file could see that this was a very real and doable
>>thing and not just some pie in the sky in the great by and by?
>>
>>This is doable right now on both the state and the federal level.  For
>>example, any corporation the value of whose stock exceeds a specified
>>amount shall be required to report the extent of employee ownership in
>>the company.  To protect and preserve the privacy of the employees, this
>>can be accomplished by using an unrelated disinterested third party, to
>>which the employees stock owners report their existing ownership.  The
>>corporation reports the results in its filings each quarter.  This
>>information could become one of the most important pieces of data that
>>investors use to determine in which companies to invest their money.  I
>>believe the public has a need and a right to know this information.
>>This could become the "First" question asked about every company.  How
>>much do the employees own?
>>
>>This small idea could be an good step in changing how people think about
>>ownership.  Freedom and justice come in to being not from the great
>>thinkers, but rather from within the hearts and minds of common men and
>>women believing three things:  first, that it can be; second, that it
>>should be; and third that it will be.
>>
>>Richard D. Foley
>>President & CEO
>>TFG, Inc.
>>6040 N. Camino Arturo
>>Tucson, AZ 85718
>>520-742-5168
>>rerailer@earthlink.net
>
>Shann Turnbull
>P.O. Box 266 Woollahra, Sydney, Australia, 1350
>Phone: 02 9328 7466 office; 02 9327 8487 home
>Fax: 02 9327 1497 home & office.  Mobile 0418 222 378
>Outside Australia, replace first "0" with "61" after international access code
>Life long E-mail: sturnbull@mba1963.hbs.edu
>http://www.mpx.com.au/~sturnbull/index.html
>