Loblaw named one of Canada's Top 100 Employers for fourth consecutive year

BRAMPTON, ON, Oct. 10, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - (TSX: L) - For the fourth year in a row, Loblaw Companies Limited (Loblaw), one of Canada's largest private sector employers, has been named one of Canada's Top 100 Employers by Mediacorp Canada Inc. The only grocery retailer on the list, this honour was given in recognition of the Company's efforts to engage colleagues and inspire ongoing learning, igniting their passions for their work, their communities and the millions of people they interact with every day.

"We are honoured to once again be recognized as a Top 100 employer for 2013," says Judy McCrie, executive vice president, Human Resources and Labour Relations, Loblaw Companies Limited. "Being a great place to work is an ongoing process and receiving this award tells us that we are on the right track to creating the work culture and environment we are striving towards."

Being a great place to work is one of Loblaw's five corporate social responsibility principles and helps shape the Company's approach to colleague engagement. Among the initiatives that helped Loblaw earn its place on Canada's Top 100 Employers list:

Leadership Training:
Loblaw continues to advance Best Leadership initiatives holding 16 development sessions in 2011 for more than 240 participants.  Development centres offer online and in-person exercises that help assess participants' skills and motivations and provide input for individual development plans and career progression. These activities help lay the foundation for leadership and people development at Loblaw.

Colleague Development:
Loblaw continues to provide colleagues with opportunities to learn new skills and to further enhance existing skills. In 2011, nearly 50,000 colleagues were trained at Loblaw Learning Centres, which are fully equipped training facilities. The Loblaw Virtual Learning Centre also offers 250 e-courses for colleagues.

Colleague Engagement:
Loblaw is committed to increasing colleague engagement through action planning and colleague recognition programs such as:

• "Tell it as it is" survey: The colleague "tell it as it is" survey findings provide a valuable indication of how Loblaw is doing in its goal to be a great place to work. In 2012, 90% of colleagues participated nationally and scores for questions around learning and developing new skills and working for a company that reflects the nation's diversity have increased year over year.
• "Our Shared Values":  In 2012, over 2,000 Loblaw colleagues from coast-to-coast at every level of the business came together with a common purpose to refresh the Company's set of shared values by clearly defining what is important to Loblaw colleagues.  The feedback they provided was constructive as colleagues discussed both victories and challenges they experience day-to-day to help shape the Company's Shared Values.
• "Above and Beyond the Call of Duty" Colleague Recognition Program (ABCD):  Loblaw's national ABCD Recognition Program is designed to acknowledge colleagues who live our shared values and go above and beyond what is expected in their job.  All full-time, part-time and temporary colleagues can nominate or be nominated for recognition under the ABCD Program. 

Grad @ Loblaw Program:
Loblaw is committed to recruiting the most talented graduates from across Canada based on a combination of their academic results, community service and passion for serving customers, for employment opportunities throughout the organization.

New graduates who are accepted into the program enter into an 18-month rotational program that covers multiple streams including store management, supply chain, merchandising, marketing, IT, finance and human resources - participants of the program receive full benefits and pay for the duration of the program.

Upon successful completion of the program, grads are placed in a role in their destination department.

Since 2009, Loblaw has hired over 400 colleagues into the Grad@Loblaw program.

For more information about the Grad@Loblaw Program or any other job opportunities at Loblaw, please visit www.loblaw.ca/careers.

Corporate Social Responsibility:
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is critical to Loblaw's overall business success. Feeding Canadians from coast to coast, creating jobs, supporting local economies and donating and granting millions of dollars annually to local charitable causes, the Company works hard to make a positive difference in the communities it serves.  For more information about Loblaw's commitment to CSR, visit www.loblaw.ca/csr.

Loblaw has made great strides in several areas of CSR.  A few highlights include:

• In 2011, President's Choice^® Children's Charity granted $10.6 million to more than 1,800 families across Canada and donated an additional $2.75 million to fund more 4,000 nutrition programs across Canada.
• Together with their colleagues, customers and vendors, Loblaw Companies donated more than $38 million to charities and non-profit organizations across Canada in 2011.
• In 2011, as part of the Extra Helping™ food drive, Loblaw raised $1.4 million in cash donations and collected 1.5 million pounds of food for local food banks across Canada.  Loblaw also contributed $250,000 to the Food Banks Canada's National Food Sharing program.
• In 2011, Loblaw diverted 78% of waste from landfill in corporate distribution centres; 75% in store support centres; and 60% in corporate stores.

Now entering its thirteenth year, Canada's Top 100 Employers is an annual competition to determine which employers lead their industries in offering top workplaces for their employees. Employers are evaluated based on eight criteria, which have remained consistent since the competition's inception: (1) Physical Workplace; (2) Work Atmosphere & Social; (3) Health, Financial & Family Benefits; (4) Vacation & Time Off; (5) Employee Communications; (6) Performance Management; (7) Training & Skills Development; and (8) Community Involvement. Employers are compared to other organizations in their field to determine which offers the most progressive and forward-thinking programs.

To develop this year's Top 100 list, Mediacorp examined the recruitment histories of over 75,000 employers across Canada that it tracks for its popular job search site, Eluta.ca. From this initial group, Mediacorp invited 15,000 of the fastest-growing employers to apply, plus another 5,000 companies and organizations in industries that it wanted to examine more closely.  Employers completed an extensive application process that included a detailed review of their operations and HR practices. Over 3,250 employers started this year's application process. The final applicant pool was up over last year's total, which was also a record. 

About Loblaw Companies Limited
Loblaw Companies Limited, a subsidiary of George Weston Limited, is Canada's largest food retailer and a leading provider of drugstore, general merchandise and financial products and services. Loblaw is one of the largest private sector employers in Canada. With more than 1,000 corporate and franchised stores from coast to coast, Loblaw and its franchisees employ more than 135,000 full-time and part-time employees. Through its portfolio of store formats, Loblaw is committed to providing Canadians with a wide, growing and successful range of products and services to meet the everyday household demands of Canadian consumers. Loblaw is known for the quality, innovation and value of its food offering. It offers Canada's strongest control (private) label program, including the unique President's Choice®, no name® and Joe Fresh® brands. In addition, the Company makes available to consumers President's Choice Financial® services and offers the PC® points loyalty program.

SOURCE: Provigo, member of Loblaw group

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