The voestalpine employee participation plan has been considered a European model for years. Developed in 2000, the concept contributes significantly to a stable ownership structure within the Group by pooling voting rights in an employee participation foundation, while simultaneously enabling employees to directly participate in the company's success. Currently, voestalpine employees represent over 14 percent of voestalpine AG's voting rights. While previously, shares from the voestalpine employee participation plan were only distributed to Austrian employees upon leaving the Group, this year, as an exception, the portion of shares that are no longer subject to tax retention periods will be distributed before the end of their employment. This creates scope for future allocations and ensures that the employee share remains permanently within the defined voting rights range of 10 percent to 15 percent.

The voestalpine employee participation program is the largest employee participation program in Austria, both in terms of voting percentage and share value. "The continuous development of employee participation is a central part of our strategy to secure our sustainable ownership structure in the long term. Our concept of employees as core shareholders is unique in Europe and serves as a model for many other companies. With this current adjustment, we are safeguarding our unique model for the future, with all the benefits it offers for employees and the Group," says Herbert Eibensteiner, CEO of voestalpine AG.

This flagship model was developed 25 years ago as a joint project between management and the works council to ensure a strong core shareholder base during the company's stock market privatization. A target corridor of 10 to less than 15 percent of voting rights for employees was defined. This makes a potential hostile takeover more difficult, as employee participation with a voting share of more than 10 percent can prevent a potential squeeze-out. The voting share is already just below the 15 percent threshold, which is why, as an exception, a portion of the shares—specifically those allocated up to 2017 with the five-year tax retention period applicable at the time—will be issued before the end of the employment relationship to mark the 25th anniversary.

In addition to all Austrian employees, employees in eleven other European countries now also hold shares in voestalpine. At the end of the 2023/24 financial year (March 31, 2024), approximately 26,000 active employees held approximately 25 million voestalpine shares.

The voestalpine Group

voestalpine is a leading global steel and technology group with combined materials and processing expertise. The globally active group has approximately 500 Group companies and locations in more than 50 countries on all five continents. The voestalpine Group has been listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange since 1995. With its premium product and system solutions, it is one of the leading partners of the automotive and household appliance industries, as well as the aviation and energy industries, and is also the global market leader in railway infrastructure systems, tool steel, and special profiles. voestalpine is committed to global climate goals and, with greentec steel, is pursuing a clear plan for the transformation of steel production. In the 2023/24 financial year, the Group generated revenue of EUR 16.7 billion, an operating result (EBITDA) of EUR 1.7 billion, and employed approximately 51,600 people worldwide.