Siemens : Nearly every second employee also a shareholder

Munich, 2017-Feb-07

Of Siemens' 351,000 employees worldwide, nearly one in two is also a company shareholder. The number of employees holding Siemens shares increased eight percent to 165,000, compared to 153,000 in the previous year. This year, more than 131,000 employees - or 39 percent of all eligible employees - took part in Siemens' Share Matching Program, a very high figure compared to similar global share programs. Particularly noteworthy was the positive trend in North America and Asia: Participation in the U.S. alone increased by around 18 percent and even climbed by roughly 32 percent in China.

After a three-year holding period, Siemens employee shareholders receive one matching share at no additional expense for every three shares held. This year, Siemens distributed around 473,000 of these matching shares with a total value of approximately €56 million. Eighty-two thousand employees in 66 countries profited from this distribution. Most of these employees have long-term investment horizons: 87 percent of all employee shareholders still hold their matching shares three years after receiving them.

'I'm very pleased that more and more Siemens employees are also shareholders in our company. This signals a clear commitment to our company and shows that our employees believe in their company and identify with it. For me, ownership means to actively help shape change. Along with codetermination and self-determination, it also means, above all, co-responsibility,' said Joe Kaeser, President and CEO of Siemens.

The Share Matching Program is the core of Siemens' equity culture and one of the world's largest employee share programs. The program has been successfully implemented in annual tranches since 2008. Around 335,000 employees worldwide in 60 countries currently have the possibility of participating in the program.