We invite you to free professional events near you.

Interested in selling your business? How to introduce employee rewards and increase employee loyalty? As part of the Esop tour, we will visit a number of cities in Slovenia and talk to entrepreneurs who are looking for ways to build strategic partnerships with your employees. 

In 2026, a new legal order entered the Slovenian legal order The Esop Law (Workers' Ownership Cooperative Act - WOCA), which allows the tax-advantaged sale of shares in a company to employees and rewards workers by paying out profits through an Esop scheme.

At the events we will present:

• how the new legislation (LFVZ) can helps entrepreneurs when selling a business,
• what it is The Difference between the Esop model and the law on employee profit-sharing,
• where they are advantages and traps financial participation of employees, in line with best practices worldwide,
• operating principle Aesop of the model and Employee Ownership Cooperative Act (Slovenian: ZLZD), which brings concrete tax benefits and new business opportunities.

Employee co-ownership contributes to the business success of the company, leads to more stability, builds a sense of responsibility in the team, is a good tool for fostering employee loyalty and motivation, and embeds care for the local environment in the company's ownership DNA.

The events are aimed primarily at entrepreneurs, owners and managers who:

• considering a (partial) sale of the company and looking for the most suitable buyers,
• for the long-term well-being of the company, the team, the local environment and the community,
• look for ways to reward workers more tax-efficiently; and
• want more staff stability and improved competitiveness.

The new Employee Owners' Cooperative Society Act (Esop Act) can help you on your way to improving your company's working environment. Workers and anyone else interested in the topic are welcome to join us.

The speaker at the event will be Tilen Božič, an expert with many years of experience in economics, tax, public finance and alternative ownership models. As an IED fellow, he actively participated in the development of the European version of the Esop model and was part of the SME working group involving experts from different fields in the drafting of the Workers' Ownership Cooperative Law.

Locations and dates of events:

• Celje, Celje National House, 18 February 2026, 9:00-11:00
• Trbovlje, Catapult, 24 Feb 2026, 9:00-11:00
• Maribor, OOZ Maribor, 18 February 2026, 14:00-16:00
• Novo mesto, Development Centre Novo mesto, 2 April 2026, 9:00-11:00
• Tolmin, 13 May 2026, 13:30-15:30 (Posoški Development Centre Tolmin, Trg tigrovcev 1, 5220 Tolmin)
• Murska Sobota, 26 May 2026, 9:00-11:00 (Pomurski Technological Park) - REPLIED
• Postojna (TBD)
• Ljubljana (TBD)
• Kranj (TBD)
• Dill (TBD)
• Krško (TBD)
• Dravograd (TBD)

If you register for an event without a date (TBD), we will inform you of the date and location in due time by email. Registration is free, and places are limited. Please register using the form below:

The IED team organises the expert lectures with the support of the Ministry for a Solidarity Future (MSP).