Gripple stay cool on EO day 2021

25th June 2021

Staff of Gripple based in South Yorkshire are delighted to be part of the UK Employee Ownership Day (EO Day), run by the Employee Ownership Association (EOA), on Friday 25th June 2021.

Gripple is taking part in this year’s campaign, to celebrate how business is better together for individuals, the business and the community. The culture of employee ownership has had a significant impact on the Gripple business’ giving growth and constant evolution. 

Our employee ownership culture of taking responsibility for our business during these challenging times, by supporting each other has allowed us to continue trading with resilience over the course of the last 16 months. 
We want to celebrate this resilience on EO day with free ice creams for everyone! Ice cream vans will be visiting all our sites across Sheffield and Rotherham, covering both shifts to bring everyone together over a choc-ice or a 99.

Formed in 1989 and employing over 850 staff, the employee-owned market-leading manufacturer of wire joining and tensioning devices with their headquartered in Sheffield is proud to celebrate employee ownership alongside others in the sector across the UK, as Hugh Facey, founder of Gripple, explains:

“I have been able to step back a little from the business which is now run by employees who will keep it alive for future generations through employee ownership.
“Our employee owners are committed because they personally have shares in the business - this leaves us in a great position to innovate and grow. Celebrating EO Day is a great way to remember how far we have come”.

Deb Oxley, CEO for the Employee Ownership Association, said: 

“Companies such as Gripple are great examples of the economic and social benefits that can be achieved when employees have a stake and a say in the business in which they work. 

“This year’s EO Day theme reflects what we have been hearing from our members – when it comes to resilience, mental health and well-being and good business we are better together. 

“This rapidly growing sector of the economy offers many great reasons why more employee ownership has lots to offer the UK as it seeks to recover from the pandemic.” 

With numerous events running across the UK and the involvement of thousands of employee owners and other partners, EO Day is an integral part of the EOA’s events calendar and was introduced to raise awareness of employee ownership as an economically strong and balanced business model. 

The benefits of employee ownership have been proven in EOA-led research, and include improving employee health and wellbeing, increasing productivity and fostering creativity and innovation across an array of industry sectors. In addition:

• UK employee owned companies contribute over £30 billion to the UK economy annually
• Employee-owners have higher levels of job satisfaction, feel a greater sense of achievement and job security, and are more likely to recommend their workplace than employees in non-employee owned businesses
• Employee owned businesses operate in a range of sectors including healthcare, social care, education, transport, manufacturing, retail and professional services