Mike Wieber Gives Insight on ESOPs in Fort Myers News-Press Article About Lawsuit Over Forced Sale of Employee Shares
Labor & Employment partner Mike Wieber shared his perspective on ESOPs in a Fort Myers News-Press article about a federal lawsuit over a company’s decision to force employees to sell their company stock. The move allegedly caused the workers to miss out on profits from a 254-room resort the company is building in Fort Myers Beach, Fla. Through the legal action, the retirement plan trustee seeks to "recover losses (and) obtain monetary and appropriate or remedial relief."
An excerpt:
In the Know asked Quarles & Brady Partner Michael Wieber, an ESOP and employment benefits expert who is not involved in the case, for his take.
"In my experience, ESOPs are generally very successful in creating wealth across their employee workforce," said Wieber, whose firm has a Naples office. "I don't think this is a uniquely ESOP-related situation. Like any business, however, employee-owned companies are at risk if the types of actions alleged in the complaint occur. And, like other businesses, ESOP-owned companies can face challenges in the marketplace. So, I think, in a case like this, we need to let the legal system do its job here to sort out why the entities involved here dropped so precipitously in value in such a short time."