Employee ownership

The John Lewis Partnership is the largest employee-owned company in the UK, but there are many more businesses that are substantially or wholly owned by the people who work for them. These companies are represented by the Employee Ownership Association which promotes the interests of the sector to government and other stakeholders.
The Partnership Council meets four times a year and represents all Partners
The Partnership Council meets four times a year and represents all Partners.

The employee-owned sector is estimated to have a value of £25 billion, representing 2 per cent of the UK economy and it is growing. Employee-owned businesses take a variety of forms and operate in almost every sector of the economy. They are united by an ethos that puts people first, involving the workforce in key decision-making and realising the potential and commitment of their employees.

The John Lewis Partnership has produced a guide to employee ownership, for those who want to find out more about our business model. The guide includes case studies of other employee-owned businesses and advice for business owners considering transferring to employee ownership.

Download our guide to employee ownership (PDF size: 312KB).

The video 'Employee Ownership, A Shared Passion', explains how our employee owned business model operates in practice, and offers insight and advice to anyone wanting to learn more about this sort of model and its benefits.

Watch the Employee Ownership, A Shared Passion video (2:45 minutes)

Watch the Employee Ownership, A Shared Passion video with subtitles (2:45 minutes)

Read the press release Employee ownership model 'shows greater resilience' explaining the recently published research that finds that companies owned by their employees are more resilient than conventionally structured companies, outperforming the market during the downturn and demonstrating a lower risk of business failure.

Being a Partner

Watch a short film of Partners explaining why our business is different.

Watch the Being a Partner video (2:14 minutes)

Watch the Being a Partner video with subtitles (2:14 minutes)

Find out more about the Employee Ownership Association (www.employeeownership.co.uk).

Find out more about working for us.

Related

  • Our approach
    Our approach to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is the cornerstone of our business.

  • The Partner Survey
    Our annual Partner Survey finds out Partners' views on a range of important subjects.

  • Working for us
    In the Partnership, employees are Partners, which means we all own the business and share in its success.

  • Democratic bodies
    All Partners have a say in how we run the business through a set of councils and committees.