Washington, DC – August 14, 2002—A survey conducted by AeA, the nation’s largest high-tech trade association, finds that public high-tech companies on average grant stock options to 84 percent of their employees. The survey also revealed that a full 60 percent of public high-tech companies provide stock options to all employees. In addition, rank-and-file workers of public high-tech companies are the recipients of the lion’s share of options with 66 percent of options grants going to non-executives, according to the survey.

"These results did not surprise us. Years of anecdotal information led us to believe our companies were providing stock options to an overwhelmingly majority of employees, now we know for certain that this is the case," said William T. Archey, President and CEO.

The survey information demonstrates that the high-tech industry would be disproportionately affected by changes to accounting rules regarding the expensing of stock options.

"While other industries provide stock options, few match the high-tech industry’s practice of providing them to virtually all employees," Archey concluded.

The AeA survey was e-mailed to 525 public high-tech company CEOs, one-third of whom responded. The survey contained two questions: "Over the past three years, what percentage of your employees were granted stock options?" and "What is the percentage of all stock options granted that go to non-officers of the corporation?"