Winn-Dixie Establishes New Employee Stock Purchase Plan

ELLIOT ZWIEBACH

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Shareholders of Winn-Dixie Stores here approved a proposal at the company's annual meeting Wednesday to establish a new employee stock purchase plan, which will allow associates to buy common stock through accumulated payroll deductions at a 5% discount to fair market value. The plan will become effective Jan. 1. The chain had a different version of the plan that was dissolved when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2005. The new plan will issue a maximum number of 1 million shares that may either be newly issued or treasury shares, as decided by the company. Participants will be able to defer between 1% and 15% of their salaries to the plan, up to $25,000 in any calendar year — though with the 5% discount, the maximum amount that could be deferred in any year would actually be $23,750, the company pointed out in proxy material. Winn-Dixie said the employee stock purchase plan will be administered initially by the compensation committee of its board.

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