Senate moves to pass bill that would appropriate $50m toward worker ownership

The Senate is taking steps toward passing a nearly $1.7 trillion omnibus spending package (Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023) needed before Christmas Eve to avert a partial government shutdown. This bill includes a huge victory for worker ownership through the Worker Ownership and Readiness and Knowledge Act, co-sponsored by Senator Sanders (D-VT) and Senator Moran (R-KS). 

The legislation appropriates $50 million over five years to create the Employee Ownership Initiative within the Department of Labor to promote employee ownership, by supporting new and existing state employee ownership programs, including:

• Federal grants toward state employee ownership programs that provide education and outreach about the possibilities and benefits of employee ownership and business succession planning.
• Funding projects to gather data and and information about state employee ownership programs
• Acting as a clearinghouse on best practices within employee ownership and disseminating that information

Read the rest at USFWC