Employee Equity

H-E-B launches innovative financial plan for employees in smart business move

H-E-B employees now have equity in the company.

Photo by John Everett

Beloved Texas-based grocery store, H-E-B (Central Market included), announced that it is giving employees equity in the company. The goal? To empower and inspire them.

A New York Times article explains that workers — who are also referred to as partners — will receive non-voting shares valued at 3 percent of their salary, in addition to $100 in stock for each year of ongoing service.

"Under the plan, workers are able to cash out when they leave or retire from the company, and will also receive dividends based on the retailer’s earnings," New York Times writer Hiroko Tabuchi stated.

The grocery store's employees qualify if they are over the age of 21 and have worked at least 1,000 hours at H-E-B in a year. That currently applies to 55,000 employees, which is 15 percent of the entire company.

Started by Florence Butt in 1905 in Kerrville, H-E-B has grown to a multi-billion dollar company with more than 350 stores in the United States and Mexico. Today, Butt’s grandson Charles Butt runs the business.

Forbes contributor Roger Dooley called H-E-B “the smartest supermarket you never heard of” in 2014, commending the company for its low prices, feel-good atmosphere, and friendly employees.

“I learn life lessons of how to be a better person from the leadership of H-E-B almost every day. And here comes another big learning — give people your trust, responsibility, and generosity and expect good results to come,” added Leslie Sweet, H-E-B director of public affairs in Central Texas.

She explained that this new benefit will make the company stronger. “It will make us more educated about our business and more personally invested in making H-E-B the best place to shop,” Sweet said. “H-E-B partners (employees) are passionate about two things: taking care of our families and taking care of our customers. This employee stock plan will help us do both.”

The atmosphere at H-E-B is just as nice, but with happier employees.

“It’s one big party at work! I’ve had calls from friends asking me what’s going on in our stores because they are seeing the contagious excitement and energy from our partners. We’re loving the early Christmas present,” Sweet exclaimed.

a major award

$2.6 million grant funds UH research towards a fentanyl vaccine

Photo by Jellybee on Unsplash

UH has received a new financial gift towards the Michael C. Gibson Addiction Research Program, which is developing a fentanyl vaccine.

The estate of Dr. William A. Gibson has granted the University of Houston a $2.6 million gift to support and expand its opioid addiction research, including the development of a fentanyl vaccine that could block the drug's ability to enter the brain.

The gift builds upon a previous donation from the Gibson estate that honored the scientist’s late son Michael, who died from drug addiction in 2019. The original donation established the Michael C. Gibson Addiction Research Program in UH's department of psychology. The latest donation will establish the Michael Conner Gibson Endowed Professorship in Psychology and the Michael Conner Gibson Research Endowment in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences.

“This incredibly generous gift will accelerate UH’s addiction research program and advance new approaches to treatment,” Daniel O’Connor, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, said in a news release.

The Michael C. Gibson Addiction Research Program is led by UH professor of psychology Therese Kosten and Colin Haile, a founding member of the UH Drug Discovery Institute. Currently, the program produces high-profile drug research, including the fentanyl vaccine.

According to UH, the vaccine can eliminate the drug’s “high” and could have major implications for the nation’s opioid epidemic, as research reveals Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) is treatable.

The endowed professorship is combined with a one-to-one match from the Aspire Fund Challenge, a $50 million grant program established in 2019 by an anonymous donor. UH says the program has helped the university increase its number of endowed chairs and professorships, including this new position in the department of psychology.

“Our future discoveries will forever honor the memory of Michael Conner Gibson and the Gibson family,” O’Connor added in the release. “And I expect that the work supported by these endowments will eventually save many thousands of lives.”

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This story originally was published on our sister site, InnovationMap.

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