Retail
giant Tesco is giving more than 160,000 of its workers company shares worth
£63m.
The
shares, valued at 3.6 per cent of the Tesco salary bill, are to be kept in a
trust and will be available tax-free to staff after five years.
Tesco
chief executive Sir Terry Leahy said the giveaway was a “thank you” gift for
employees.
“Our
staff do a great job for our customers,” said Leahy. “Giving our people the
chance to be shareholders is our way of ensuring they share in the success of
the business.”
The
giveaway is in addition to £34m of shares handed out to workers in the 2001
profit share scheme which matured in May this year.
Tesco
is the UK’s largest private sector employer with more than 237,000 employees.
All staff with one year’s service are eligible for the share scheme.
By
Paul Yandall
