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The CEO of Europe's most valuable company is linking his pay to a personal mission to boost employee morale.
Christophe Fouquet, the CEO of Dutch tech firm ASML, said last week that the company will incorporate employee satisfaction into its compensation strategy for top executives in an effort to quell discontent over a major reorganization, per a memo to employees obtained exclusively by Business Insider.
Fouquet was responding to the results of an annual survey that polled more than 38,000 of ASML's roughly 44,000 employees.
The survey results, seen by Business Insider, show that ASML's employee engagement index — a measure of worker satisfaction — fell from 78% last year to 73.5% this year.
In the memo, Fouquet said that the declining employee engagement scores "reflect a period of significant change" and acknowledged that it had been a "disruptive and emotional year" for the company.
He added that ASML's executive team had highlighted six questions in the survey and combined them into a new Workplace Experience Index, which would be incorporated into the company's Long-Term Incentive plan for executive compensation.
"In the coming years, it will directly influence the remuneration of senior leaders, including the Board of Management," Fouquet wrote, adding that strengthening the company's culture and reinforcing its values would be a personal priority in the coming year.
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The six questions include whether employees feel they can share their opinions without fear of retaliation and if they have confidence in ASML's senior leadership team.
Employees will also be polled on whether they have a clear understanding of their role, whether they think their teams are operating efficiently and are well organized, and whether they feel their direct manager shows they care about them as an individual.
"We recognize the role that leaders play in creating a good workplace, and we now strengthen our commitment by including the workplace experience index in the remuneration of senior leadership, including our Board of Management," an ASML spokesperson told Business Insider.
It comes as ASML, the only firm on the planet capable of building the advanced EUV lithography machines critical for chipmakers like TSMC and Intel, attempts to slash bureaucracy with a sweeping org chart reorganization.
ASML announced in January that it could cut 1,700 jobs to reduce management layers and focus on engineering. Leaked documents previously reported by Business Insider show that these ongoing efforts have focused on reducing the number of managers at the company. The company later said it expected to cut fewer jobs than initially planned.
The ASML spokesperson said that its organizational changes were "necessary to strengthen ASML's ability to innovate" for its customers, but it also recognized they were "disruptive" for staff.
Major companies tying executive pay to employee satisfaction is uncommon, but not unheard of.
Companies like IBM and Aviva have previously included employee engagement in their compensation targets for top executives.
ASML's decision, however, runs counter to the cultural winds of Big Tech, which have seen some companies embark on relentless layoffs and push employees to work longer hours as part of a "hardcore" working shift.
Meta was an early, prominent leader of this push, with a series of layoffs that began in 2023 during Mark Zuckerberg's "year of efficiency" and, last year, cutting "low performers." CTO Andrew Bosworth at one point suggested that employees who disagreed with the company's direction should "consider working elsewhere."
Executives have since acknowledged internally that Meta went too far with its efficiency push, with Bosworth telling workers that morale at the company was almost the worst it has ever been.
Fouquet's memo to employees came days before ASML raised its 2026 sales forecast and pledged to accelerate production of its unique lithography machines as the AI boom fuels surging demand.
The company's machines are vital for producing the advanced semiconductors used to train and run AI models, and the rapid buildout of AI data centers has pushed ASML's shares up 45% this year.
One major prospective customer for the Dutch firm is Elon Musk, who is racing to build a massive semiconductor factory dubbed "Terafab" in Texas. Business Insider previously reported that Musk gave a virtual presentation to a private ASML employee conference in June to pitch Terafab, which is a joint project by Tesla and SpaceX.
Editor's note: October 23, 2026 — This story was updated to include a statement from ASML.
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Autarquia entregou leitores de microchips às Juntas de Freguesia
Numa primeira iniciativa pública no âmbito da sua política para o bem-estar animal, a Câmara Municipal de Loulé entregou, na passada sexta-feira, onze aparelhos de leitura de microchips às Juntas de Freguesia do concelho, com o objetivo de agilizar o processo de identificação de animais perdidos ou encontrados na via pública.
Esta entrega surge no âmbito da legislação de 2019, que estabelece que a identificação eletrónica e o registo no SIAC – Sistema de Informação de Animais de Companhia são obrigatórios para cães, gatos e furões. A aplicação do microchip e o respetivo registo permanecem como competência exclusiva dos médicos veterinários, contudo o papel das autarquias locais no terreno revela-se crucial para a eficácia do sistema.
“Todos sabemos que são frequentemente as Juntas de Freguesia e os seus colaboradores que primeiro chegam junto de um animal encontrado na via pública. Nesses momentos, ter à mão um leitor de microchip pode fazer toda a diferença: pode significar a diferença entre um animal que regressa em poucas horas a casa, junto do seu tutor, e um animal que fica, dias ou semanas, entregue à sorte”, explicou o autarca Telmo Pinto.
Ana Poeta, do Gabinete de Apoio ao Presidente responsável pelas questões para o bem-estar animal, destacou as vantagens estratégicas da identificação eletrónica. Por um lado, garante a identificação, de forma segura e permanente, do animal, aumentando significativamente as hipóteses de ser devolvido ao seu tutor caso seja encontrado. Por outro lado, permite cruzar os dados do animal com o registo do tutor de forma imediata, assim que o dispositivo é detetado pelo leitor. Tem ainda um papel importante no combate ao abandono e ao furto uma vez que permite associar legalmente o animal ao seu responsável e facilita a investigação nestes casos.
A realidade local em Loulé espelha uma crescente consciencialização dos munícipes. Graças ao incremento da identificação dos animais por parte dos tutores, registou-se um aumento significativo de devoluções com sucesso. Só no decorrer do ano de 2026, cerca de 80 animais já regressaram aos seus lares originais.
Estas situações de sucesso resultam de uma forte articulação local que envolve animais recolhidos pelo Gabinete Médico-Veterinário, alertas de munícipes, solicitações das autoridades policiais, contactos através da Linha GEO 24 e intervenções decorrentes de atropelamentos na via pública.
Além dos 11 aparelhos distribuídos, garantindo uma cobertura total do território, o plano de ação prevê um reforço operacional alargado. Serão entregues mais quatro equipamentos adicionais para equipar as forças de segurança (dois) e para os Bombeiros Sapadores de Loulé (dois), dotando os agentes de primeira linha das ferramentas necessárias para responder a estas ocorrências.
Refira-se que, neste momento, a Autarquia está a desenvolver um conjunto de iniciativas que pretendem robustecer a política municipal para o bem-estar animal.
Como pilar central deste investimento estrutural, Telmo Pinto referiu a construção do novo Centro de Bem-Estar Animal em Benafim e a criação de um Gabinete de Bem-Estar Animal dedicado em exclusivo a esta área. Para sustentar estas operações, está igualmente em curso o reforço da equipa do Gabinete Médico-Veterinário Municipal.
Entre as medidas de apoio direto, destaca-se o programa de atribuição do Cheque Veterinário, medida destinada prioritariamente a animais de famílias carenciadas previamente identificadas e a colónias de gatos sob responsabilidade direta da Autarquia.
A pensar no quotidiano dos munícipes, serão criados espaços urbanos para animais com a placa “Eu espero aqui”, equipados com bebedouro e mosquetões, permitindo deixar os animais em segurança por breves instantes. O plano integra ainda a dinamização regular de campanhas de adoção e apadrinhamento, sendo que uma delas arranca já em setembro.
No âmbito do controlo populacional, a Autarquia encontra-se a realizar o levantamento detalhado das colónias de felinos no território. Até ao final de junho, os dados registam: 142 colónias identificadas no concelho, 2170 gatos contabilizados, cerca de 100 cuidadores e cuidadoras registados e 433 gatos ainda por esterilizar.
Para gerir esta realidade, o Município aplica o programa CED (Captura–Esterilização–Devolução). Os gatos são capturados, esterilizados, identificados eletronicamente com microchip, desparasitados e devolvidos à colónia de origem. O animal mantém o seu estatuto errante, mas fica integrado num programa oficial sob monitorização sanitária. A autarquia reconhece que a lista de espera para este programa é atualmente extensa, justificando-se assim o reforço em curso das equipas médicas municipais.
O ponto alto da sensibilização pública calendarizado para este ano acontece em outubro com a iniciativa “Loulé, Amigo do Animal”, uma feira de bem-estar animal, estando as inscrições para expositores já abertas. Ao longo de todo o mês, o evento contará ainda com cursos de primeiros-socorros a animais, exposições e diversas atividades para a comunidade.
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