Now 925 of the eligible 1,500 employees are union members.

And 49 percent said that they had increased the number of employees eligible for such programs since 1997.

However, you must offer every eligible employee the chance to participate.

This compares with the $137 million paid last year to 48,500 eligible employees, the company said.

If all eligible employees take up the offer, 32 million options will be canceled.

Note that eligible employees have the right to request flexible working.

The eligible employees have until the end of October to participate in the incentive program.

With 425 of the 700 eligible employees voting, the final count was 377 for and 48 against the company's sale.

The most recent industry surveys show that about 20 to 25 percent of eligible employees have outstanding loans.

About 20 percent of eligible employees do not participate.