ESOP
Employee Ownership With The Plus Family
In 2024, The Plus Family proudly launched its Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). It is a milestone that reflects our commitment to building a workplace where every team member has a real stake in our success. This isn’t just a benefit; it’s a culture shift that empowers our people and strengthens our future.
Since launching our ESOP, we’ve seen an incredible boost in collaboration and commitment. It’s more than a program, it’s a promise that The Plus Family will remain employee owned, community focused, and driven by our core values: Integrity, Safety, Quality, and Innovation.
Be Part of Something Bigger.
When you join The Plus Family, you’re not just starting a career; you’re investing in your future and becoming part of a team that truly owns its success.
Common Questions
ESOP Rules
The vested portion of your account becomes yours on any one of four occasions: Retirement, Death, Disability and Termination for other causes. For more information on timing, please visit the page, Find out how to get your money.
| ESOP Vesting Schedule | |
| 1 Year of Service | 0% |
| 2 Years | 0% |
| 3 Years | 100% |
If you leave before you are 100% vested, the portion of your account that is not vested will be forfeited and shared by the remaining plan participants.
After joining the ESOP, you may be eligible to share in Company contributions that are used to acquire Company stock for your account. You are eligible to share in contributions for any year in which you work 1,000 hours AND are employed on the last day of the plan year (December 31).
You must work for The Plus Family for at least six months and work 1,000 hours or more in that year. After completing these requirements, you enter the Plan on defined dates.
A formula is used to determine how much of the total contribution is yours in any given year. Your contribution bears the same relationship to the total contribution as your Compensation bears to the total Compensation of all eligible participants in the ESOP. This also takes into account dollars contributed to other defined contribution/benefit retirement plans.
For example, if your Compensation during a Plan Year is $40,000 and all Plan participants together have total compensation of $2,000,000, your account will be credited with $40,000/$2,000,000 or two percent (2%) of the total Company contributions, forfeitures and allocations of Company stock to be credited for that Plan Year. If the total allocation for that plan year is 2,500 shares, then you would receive 2 percent, or 50 shares.
Example: 2,500 shares x $40,000 / $2,000,000 = 50 shares
You must become “vested” in your account balance before it is yours for good. You will receive a year of service for vesting for any Plan year in which you work 1,000 hours or more.
| ESOP Vesting Schedule | |
| 1 Year of Service | 0% |
| 2 Years | 0% |
| 3 Years | 100% |
If you leave before you are 100% vested, the portion of your account that is not vested will be forfeited and shared by the remaining plan participants.
Your account will vest 100% if the following occurs while you are employed at The Plus Family:
- You become permanently disabled
- You reach Normal Retirement Age
- Your death occurs
You have two ways to retire from The Plus Family:
- You reach Normal Retirement Age, which is the later of age 65 or 5 years of service.
- You reach Late Retirement Age, which is anytime you decide to retire after you have passed Normal Retirement Age.
Shares are forfeited in the year a participant terminates employment and are essentially treated as an additional contribution for the year.
ESOP Value and Management
Among other things, the appraiser looks at the following: current earnings, company assets, projected profitability and industry trends.
The ESOP Trustee determines the stock value by engaging a third-party appraiser who is in the business of valuing companies for ESOP purposes. Stock valuations are conducted annually as of the last day of each plan year (December 31).
The trustee of the ESOP is Kjersti Cory with SCJ Associates
The trustee of the ESOP manages the plan assets in the best interests of plan participants. The trustee also sets the price of the stock with the help of a third-party appraiser.
ESOP Voting Rights
You may be asked to vote if one of the following situations arises:
- Consolidation
- Proposed merger with another company
- Reclassification
- Dissolution or Liquidation
- Sale of substantially all of the company assets
- Recapitalization
ESOP Acquisition Loan
Among other things, the appraiser looks at the following: current earnings, company assets, projected profitability and industry trends.
The Plus Family ESOP can buy more stock for participants now. Because the stock is paid for over a defined period, participants are provided with a definite allocation every year in which the loan is outstanding.
ESOPs are permitted by law to borrow money to purchase shares, and this is known as an ESOP acquisition loan. The stock purchased with the loan is held in a suspense account – an account used to hold assets that have not yet been allocated to participants. Shares in the suspense account are released only as the loan is repaid. Each year, the Company will fund the ESOP with Employer Contributions for the ESOP to use to pay back this loan, and shares released with the payments for that year are allocated to participants’ ESOP accounts.
The Plus Family is responsible for paying back the loan. ESOP participants are not responsible for any loan payments.
ESOP Cost to You
The Plus Family ESOP participants will not put any of their own money into the ESOP, BUT:
- ESOP participants now have a shared responsibility to help the Company grow
- Participants’ retirement accounts depend upon the value of the Company’s shares
- The ESOP increases participants’ stake in the Company and the Company’s stake in them
No, you are neither required nor permitted to put your own money into the ESOP.
Your ESOP Account Balance
Factors that affect your account balance are:
- Number of shares
- The Company’s annual contribution
- Your share of amounts forfeited by other participants
- Your compensation
- Your years of vesting service
- Value of the Company’s stock
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