Banking giant HBOS is to award its 60,000 UK workers £54m worth of free shares, claiming that the move will cement its position as the leading FTSE 100 firm in terms of employee incentivisation
The shares, which are worth 5% of employees’ annual salary as of last month, will range from £500 to the Inland Revenue’s ceiling of £3,000.
They supplement the package of £222m announced in March, which breaks down at an average bonus of £2,850 per employee.
The free shares allocation, combined with the £222m annual bonus brings the total reward for colleagues in 2005 to £276m. This surpasses the £200m awarded to employees by Tesco announced in March.
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David Fisher, HBOS Group HR director, told the Scotsman: “Free shares give colleagues the opportunity to own part of the business and share in the success of HBOS.
“That direct stake reinforces the key role colleagues play in delivering all our objectives for shareholders.”
