On 1st January 2026, Denmark made history. For the first time, the country passed dedicated legislation creating a vehicle for employee ownership — the EOC, or Employee Ownership Company. This is the story of how it happened. Andreas Pinstrup Jørgensen spent seven years cold-calling politicians, uniting seven parties across the political divide, building coalitions with unions and universities, and publishing a book that sparked a national conversation. What started as a bottom-up grassroots initiative became landmark legislation. In this episode, Andreas walks through the blueprint for making employee ownership law — and what Denmark does next to make the revolution real.
Key Takeaways:
🌟 Denmark's EOC law creates a level playing field for the first time — previously it was always easier to sell to family or an external buyer than to employees
✅ Cross-party unity was the secret weapon — seven parties from across the political divide agreed because employee ownership solved four shared problems: succession, productivity, worker welfare, and community resilience
💡 Three implementation lessons from the UK — create early champions, build the advisor ecosystem, and rigorously document everything so the law can be refined
🎧 Lower barriers accelerate uptake — Denmark only requires a 33% minimum sale to employees (vs 50% in the UK's EOT), making it easier for cautious owners to take the first step
📈 Capital infrastructure is next — five financial institutions are already in discussions on loan guarantees and strategic employee ownership lending
🔗 The employees are genuinely in control — unlike some models, Denmark's EOC gives employees 100% ownership of the holding vehicle and seats on the board
Notable Quotes:
"I have never been in a room where we could agree so much across the radical left and radical right. I've not seen anything like it since the climate movement in Denmark."
"You have an opportunity to make history. This is a way to preserve your legacy — by turning your company over to the employees. That will make your company more stable in the future."
"We are in great debt to the UK, the EOA, Graham Nuttall, Campbell. We've got all these people that have helped us — and that's the only reason I have quite a bit of optimism that this might create, within a few years, an ownership revolution."
Links & Resources:
🔗 Guest: Andreas Pinstrup Jørgensen — https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreas-pinstrup-j%C3%B8rgensen-021ba3a8/
🔗 Think Tank for Democratic Businesses: https://demokratiskerhverv.dk/
📖 Book: Medejer (Co-Ownership — the art of overtaking competitors through democratic ownership), 2020
📖 Recommended reading: Making One Dragon (White & White) | The Citizen's Share (Blasi, Freeman & Kruse, 2013)
🔗 Host: Andy Farquharson — https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfarquharson/
🔗 a better monday: https://abettermonday.me
