leveraged ESOP

The best thing about an employee-stock-ownership plan is that it gives workers a stake in their company's future. Which is also, of course, the worst thing about it.

At a time when Enron Corp. was cutting back on its employee retirement plans to save money, executive benefits at the energy company kept getting richer.

Rosel Patton, a 49-year-old switch engineer in Marlboro, Mass., doesn't realize it, but when she saves for retirement by contributing to her 401(k), she's also helping her company save money.