Financial participation: the nature and causes of national variation

This chapter questions why legislation has been more forthcoming in some countries than others, given that the availability of fiscal benefits to companies and employees is an extremely important influence on the use of financial participation schemes. The authors discuss the main forms of financial participation, presenting survey evidence on the incidence of financial participation in Europe and further afield. They conclude with a reflection on the reasons for differences between countries in the character and incidence of financial participation. Country profiles of financial participation practices are presented.