Harris Teeter 1998 Annual Report Download - page 20

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Ruddick Corporation
and Subsidiaries
18
ESOP & Dividend Reinvestment and Stock Purchase Plan
The Employee Stock Ownership Plan: An
Important Benefit for Associates
In the decade after its 1968 incorpora-
tion, Ruddick Corporation was one of the
first to adopt a new type of employee bene-
fit program, called an Employee Stock
Ownership Plan or ESOP. Through this
plan, shares of Ruddick stock are con-
tributed to individual accounts for our
associates. While the associates do not con-
tribute financially, they are, after vesting,
entitled to the full value of the account
upon retirement. Contributions in a given
year are based on the Company’s return
on equity, as well as associate wages and
years of service.
Ruddick believes strongly in the con-
cept of employee ownership. We believe
that employee/owners are more dedicated
to their work, produce better products
and furnish better service to customers
because they have a true vested interest
in the Company and its success. As owners,
the interests of our associates are directly
aligned with those of our other share-
holders. The associates not only receive
current pay for the performance of their
jobs, but they are also rewarded for the
results of their efforts.
Now the ESOP has been in place for
over 20 years and is a vital element of our
associates’ retirement package. During fis-
cal 1998, approximately 10,500 associates
participated in the ESOP and it owned
25% of the total shares of Ruddick com-
mon stock outstanding.
The Dividend Reinvestment and Stock
Purchase Plan: An Opportunity for All
Our Shareholders
Ruddick Corporation is pleased to
offer our shareholders the opportunity to
automatically reinvest the dividends that
you receive on your holdings of Ruddick
stock and to also invest up to $3,000 each
month toward the purchase of stock for
your account. The plan provides our share-
holders with a simple and convenient
way to purchase additional shares of our
stock, without paying brokerage commis-
sions. For more information or a plan
brochure, please call our plan administra-
tors at 1
|
800
|
633-4236 or call Ruddick
Corporation and request shareholder
information.
Associate participation in stock
ownership through our Company-
wide Employee Stock Ownership
Plan offers them the opportu-
nity to directly participate in
Ruddick’s success.