How Employee Ownership Could Save America’s Democracy | Joseph Blasi

What do the drafters of the U.S. Constitution, 19th-century industrialists, and a modern defense contractor have in common? According to economic sociologist Joseph Blasi, they all believed in one powerful idea: that democracy itself depends on ownership, and that ownership should be broadly shared. He argues that if we want work to truly work for humans, we need to think beyond job design to a more fundamental question: Who owns the value that work creates? In this episode, Dart and Joe tell the story of shared ownership, from 1700s fishing crews and America’s founding ideals to an $8 billion worker-owned defense contractor, and what it means for the future of work.

Joseph Blasi is a Distinguished Professor at the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations, where he studies the economic sociology of corporations, governance, and the workplace. He is director of the Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing and co-author of The Citizen’s Share.

In this episode, Dart and Joe discuss:
- How democracy depends on shared ownership
- The surprising history of profit-sharing on cod fishing ships
- How early U.S. policies supported worker ownership
- Why ESOPs work and where they fall short
- The role of tax policy in spreading employee ownership
- What the founders envisioned for property and citizenship
- How wealth distribution shapes democratic institutions
- Does America have enough ownership to sustain democracy?
- And other topics...

Joseph Blasi is a Distinguished Professor at the School of Management and Labor Relations at Rutgers University. He directs the Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing and is a leading scholar in the economic sociology of corporations and the future of work. He is the co-author of several books, including The Citizen’s Share, Shared Capitalism at Work, and In the Company of Owners. His research has shaped public policy on employee ownership and equity compensation in the U.S. and internationally.

Resources Mentioned:
The Citizen's Share: Reducing Inequality in the 21st Century, by Joseph R. Blasi, Richard B. Freeman, and Douglas L. Kruse: https://www.amazon.com/Citizens-Share-Reducing-Inequality-Century/dp/0300209339
Rutgers Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing: https://smlr.rutgers.edu/content/institute-study-employee-ownership-and-profit-sharing
ESOP Association: https://www.esopassociation.org/

Connect with Joseph:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-blasi-870102111/

Work with Dart:
Dart is the CEO and co-founder of the work design firm 11fold. Build work that makes employees feel alive, connected to their work, and focused on what’s most important to the business. Book a call at 11fold.com.