I sometimes joke that putting a history major in charge of manufacturing was probably a mistake. But I am grateful someone gave me the chance anyway. I started at Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories more than two decades ago as an assembler on the production floor. I did not come in with a technical degree or years of experience in the industry. What I had was a willingness to learn, and what I found was a company that believed in growing its people.

Over the years, I moved from frontline work to customer service, quality and operations. Today, I serve as senior vice president of manufacturing. That path was made possible because I was part of an employee-owned company—a place where people are trusted, supported and given the space to figure out who they want to become.

Not everyone takes the same path I did, and that is the point. In production, I have worked alongside employees who wanted exactly what they had: a stable, rewarding career doing work they enjoyed. They did not want to move into leadership or change roles. They took pride in what they did, stayed for 20 or 25 years and retired comfortably.

At most companies, that kind of outcome would be rare. But here, it is a real possibility. On average, workers at private employee-owned companies have more than twice the retirement savings of their peers at other firms.

At companies like ours, an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) gives employees shares of company stock that accumulate throughout their careers, creating a direct financial stake in the long-term success of the business. This is one reason why the median employee tenure at employee-owned companies is about 50% higher than at traditional businesses. When people feel respected and rewarded, they build careers instead of just finding jobs.

That kind of culture is possible because people are empowered to think differently about their work. At SEL, we encourage employees to test ideas, improve processes and solve problems without waiting for permission from the top. When people feel trusted to make decisions, they take more pride in the outcome. They feel ownership over the process, not just the result.

Nationally, only about one in three employees say they feel engaged at work. But when you create an environment where people can speak up, try new things and see their ideas implemented, that number could increase. You do not need to convince people to care—you just need to give them a reason.

The problem is that not enough people know that employee ownership is even an option. Too many workers have never heard of it, and too many business owners do not know how to make it happen. As a result, a model that helps employees build wealth, strengthen communities and stay engaged in meaningful work remains far too rare.

Nationally, there are 6,548 ESOPs with close to 15 million participants. That number should be higher. To get there, we need better tools and policies to support more businesses in making the transition to employee ownership.

The Promotion and Expansion of Private Employee Ownership Act is a bipartisan bill that would make it easier for companies to become employee-owned. It would provide technical assistance and encourage retiring owners to sell to their employees.

U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, along with Rep. Mike Simpson—all from my home state of Idaho—have already cosponsored the bill, demonstrating growing support for employee ownership. Now, we need more members of Congress to follow their lead. By supporting this legislation, lawmakers can help more businesses extend ownership opportunities to their employees, more workers build a secure retirement and more local economies thrive.

What makes me proud after all these years is not just what we build, but who we build it with. I see people take chances, try new roles, mentor others and grow in ways they never thought possible. I have watched careers take shape and secure retirements become reality. And I know that employee ownership is what made that possible. It creates the kind of workplace where people want to stay, want to invest, and want to pay it forward. That is not just good for manufacturing—it is good for the future of work in this country.