Some 23,000 BT employees are to receive £265 million between them through the organisation’s share scheme payout.
Two of the communication firm’s sharesave plans have matured, a five-year plan that opened in 2010 and a three-year plan that commenced in 2012.
Almost 13,000 employees joined each of the schemes and around 2,500 participated in both share plans, saving between £5 and £250 each month until July 2015.
Staff in the 2010 five-year plan can now purchase shares for £1.04 each, which is a £3.64 discount compared to the £4.68 share price when financial markets closed on 30 July.
Employees participating in the 2012 three-year plan can buy shares at £1.89, representing a discount of £2.79.
The gains that the share plan participants can make depend on how much they saved a month and on the share price on the day they sell any or all of the shares they have bought.
Those that saved the monthly average of £47 in the five-year plan could make an average gain of £10,236, while those in the three-year plan could make an average gain of £4,400.
Staff that saved the maximum £250 a month could make gains of £54,064 and £13,279 through the five and three-year plans, respectively.
Gavin Patterson, chief executive of BT, said: “I’m delighted that so many BT people are sharing in BT’s success through our saveshare plan.”
“BT was facing tough times five years ago and this was reflected in the share price. We’re in a much stronger place today and I would like to thank our people for the major part they’ve played in the turnaround over the past five years.”
Gabbi Stopp, head of employee share ownership at IFS Proshare, said: “As these figures today demonstrate, employee share ownership is a vital and valuable workplace benefit, benefitting employers, their staff and the economy as a whole.
“BT’s commitment to employee share ownership and the gains made by their participants represent a great success story for other organisations to reference when seeking to enhance their own share ownership vehicles.
“Valuable maturities from schemes like BT’s demonstrate the enduring power and relevance of sharesave today as a means of motivating and rewarding employees.”
