Month: June 2024

By Christine Graf

If you’ve visited your local Stewart’s Shops lately, you may have been waited on by a millionaire. Thanks to the company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), a significant number of employees have become millionaires. 

Nationwide, only about 6,300 companies offer ESOPs, employee benefit plans that give workers ownership interest in their company in the form of shares of stock. Stewart’s Shop is one of just a handful of local businesses to offer this benefit to its employees. 

“ESOP programs have been getting a lot more attention from leaders in the state and other businesses,” said Robin Cooper, public relations manager for Stewart’s Shops. “I’m only aware of four or five companies in the region that have them.”

At Stewarts, both full- and part-time employees ages 19 and up are eligible to enroll. A person must work 500 hours in a quarter or 1,000 hours in a year, whichever occurs first. After a period of six years, the employee is fully vested. At that point in time, the balance of his or her ESOP is equivalent to approximately one year’s salary.  

In 2022, Stewart’s Shops made $19 million in contributions to the ESOP accounts of 3,000 active employees, each one receiving the equivalent of 16 percent of his or her annual salary. That year, ESOP participants saw their account balances grow by 12.5 percent compared to the previous year. 

The Stewart’s ESOP was established in 2001, and employees now own 40 percent of the privately-held company. The plan is 100 percent company paid.

“We have also been paying dividends for about the past ten years,” said Alison Abbey, personnel manager for Stewart’s Shops. “Those are paid quarterly. People can take them as cash or roll them into their balance.”

NBT Bancorp Inc.  has announced that its CEO Succession Plan unanimously approved by NBT’s board of directors in January was executed with Scott A. Kingsley succeeding John H. Watt, Jr. as NBT’s 15th president and chief executive officer. Kingsley was also elected to NBT’s board of directors. Watt will continue to serve on the board and has been named vice chairman.

NBT also announced the promotion of Joseph R. Stagliano to president of NBT Bank, N.A., the company’s wholly-owned banking subsidiary, Annette L. Burns to executive vice president and chief financial officer, and Shauna M. Hyle to executive vice president, retail community banking.

NBT Board Chairman Martin A. Dietrich said, “Smooth leadership transitions are a characteristic of high-performing companies. The board enthusiastically and unanimously approved the succession plan we announced in January. We thank John for the vision and energy he has invested in NBT, and we are fortunate to have a tested and aligned executive management team with strong and experienced leaders like Scott, Joe, Annette and Shauna.”

Kingsley joined NBT in 2021 as executive vice president and chief  financial officer. He has more than 35 years of experience, including 16 years as a member of the management team at Community Bank System, Inc., where he served as chief operating officer and, prior to that, as chief financial officer. Kingsley started his career with PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP before joining the Carlisle Companies, Inc., a publicly traded global manufacturer and distributor, where he served in financial and operational leadership roles. 

A certified public accountant, Kingsley earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Clarkson University. He is an active community advocate, volunteer and fund-raiser. He currently serves on the Crouse Health Foundation board of trustees and the audit and finance committee for the Catholic Diocese of Syracuse and was previously chair of the board of directors of the Food Bank of Central New York.