BRAMPTON, ON, Nov. 16, 2011 /CNW/ - TSX:L - For the third year in a row, Loblaw Companies Limited (Loblaw), has
been named one of Greater Toronto's Top Employers by Mediacorp Canada Inc. The only grocery retailer on the list, Loblaw
was given this honour for creating a great place to work that inspires
colleagues to live a healthy lifestyle, engage with their community,
and develop in their careers.
"We strive to create an exceptional work environment where colleagues
feel connected and engaged," says Judy McCrie, executive vice
president, Human Resources and Labour Relations, Loblaw Companies
Limited. "It's an honour to be recognized as a top employer for Greater
Toronto. At Loblaw, our colleagues are our greatest strength. Building
a culture of excellence where people are passionate about their work is
what enables us to recruit and retain the region's best talent."
Commitment to "be a great place to work" is one of Loblaw's five corporate social responsibility (CSR)
principles, and helps shape the Company's approach to colleague
engagement. Loblaw's business practices also integrate the CSR
principles of; "respect the environment", "source with integrity", "making a positive difference in our community" and "reflect our nation's diversity".
From the corporate head office in Brampton, Ontario, to retail stores
across the GTA under such banner names as Loblaws®, Loblaw greatfood™ and Real Canadian SuperstoreTM, Loblaw colleagues live the Company's values to create a positive
experience internally and for customers.
Loblaw has earned its place on the list of Greater Toronto's Top Employers this year through the following initiatives:
Community involvement
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In the Greater Toronto Area, Loblaw colleagues receive paid time off to
volunteer with President's Choice® Children's Charity, which focuses on childhood nutrition and supporting
children with disabilities. In 2010 Loblaw provided disability grants
to 228 children totaling $1.1 million in the 'M' postal code areas and an additional 196 children in the 'L' postal code area totaling another $1.35 million.
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President's Choice® Children's Charity is actively engaged in helping fund childhood
nutrition programs and has provided 42 nutrition grants in Toronto,
this past year totaling $54,400 and another 63 nutrition grants in the
regions of Halton, York and Durham totaling $54,300.
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As part of the Company's national Extra Helping™ food drive, GTA colleagues donate time and support in-store food
drives with GTA food banks such as the Daily Bread Food Bank, North
York Harvest Food Bank and the York Region Food Network.
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Loblaw has partnered with Toronto Community Foundation for Beyond 3:30,
providing a safe and stimulating place for middle school children to
gather after school. Loblaw is also active in the Green CommUnity School Grants program, which supports school projects that connect students with nature, and
fosters an understanding of environmental issues and solutions,
stimulating environmental leadership amongst students and communities
with WWF Canada.
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Loblaw colleagues support programs aimed at helping to protect the
environment such as National Sweater Day and The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.
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For more information about Loblaw's commitment to Corporate Social
Responsibility, visit www.loblaw.ca/csr.
Innovation in recruiting and career development
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Loblaw provides an enriching and challenging program to help attract
bright minds into retail, and provide a track to successful career
development. grad@Loblaw is an 18-month program for recently graduated university and college
students who are hired as full-time salaried staff, and given an
opportunity to rotate through various roles in-store, central
merchandising as well as the specific position they were hired to do.
Since 2009, more than 250 post-secondary graduates in the GTA have been
hired.
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Loblaw features learning stores which focus on ensuring all store
colleagues understand and have the required skills to effectively
execute store processes. Such training results in improved store
standards and productivity, while delivering a level of service that
meets or exceeds customers' expectations.
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Colleagues are given the opportunity to connect across the Loblaw
network through special events and mentorship programs, such as the Women@Loblaw Network which provides women throughout the Company with an online
networking site and events that focus on professional development.
Unique work environment
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Each morning, teams across the company "huddle" for a short meeting to
provide colleagues with the most up to date information that will help
colleagues do their jobs. Huddles have been in use in Loblaw stores for
some time and now also take place at the head office and regional
distribution centres.
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Loblaw's head office has a complete Goodlife Fitness facility and
extensive sports facilities on the premises, a full service
market-style cafeteria featuring an array of menu items using President's Choice® products, an outdoor patio, fresh herb garden and state-of-the-art Test
Kitchen.
"Loblaw has built an environment where people are excited about their
work and challenged to do their best," says Katie Gardner, grad@Loblaw participant and current full time colleague. "We are given the
opportunity to network internally and learn about the Company beyond
our home departments so we feel connected to the broader business and
its objectives."
To learn more about the Greater Toronto's Top Employers competition and Mediacorp's selection of this year's recipients, visit www.canadastop100.com/toronto/
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 136,000 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.