SC Johnson named to Best Companies to Work For list

SC Johnson (SCJ) certainly has a good thing going. The company is an eight-time honoree on the "100 Best Companies to Work For" in America list, published by Fortune magazine. SCJ was listed on this year’s list as No. 27. This will be the eighth time that SCJ has been on the Fortune magazine list.

Fortune specifically recognized SCJ for employee retention. Fortune noted that 28 percent of SCJ's employees have worked there more than 20 years while 78 percent have been there more than six years.

"I cannot think of a more accurate reflection of a company's values, than how it treats the people who work there," said SC Johnson chairman and CEO Fisk Johnson. "Supporting the well-being of the workforce and building a culture where people can thrive is not just the right thing to do, it's the foundation for innovation and results. I congratulate the companies who know this to be true and share in this recognition."

The list of top-rated companies appears in the February 4, 2008 issue of Fortune, available on newsstands January 28 and at http://www.fortune.com/ this week. Fortune and the Great Place to Work Institute compile their 100 Best list based on an extensive questionnaire, an employee survey and a written portion including stories from employees explaining what makes their company a best place to work. The Great Place to Work Institute surveyed employees from more than 400 candidate companies.

Great People ... and Lifelong Learning Opportunities
For SC Johnson, being a best place to work is fundamental to who the company is and where it's going, encompassing everything from winning brands to an inclusive workforce to personal and professional development programs.

For example, SC Johnson is committed to helping employees discover their talents by offering a wealth of opportunities growth. Programs such as the Johnson Learning Institute – offering up to 40 courses, technical and leadership skill-building programs, and mentoring – afford SC Johnson people opportunities to learn, engage in the business and achieve their goals. Notably, for more than 10 years, SC Johnson also has partnered with a local technical college to provide on-site courses to employees at its largest global manufacturing site in Racine, Wis. Known as the link program, the initiative has offered 700 classes to date with more than 4,000 enrollments and has enabled employees to complete associates' degrees, technical diplomas or other certifications.

An Inclusive Culture, With New Support Groups
SC Johnson has long been known for its "great place to work" culture and for being an employer of choice. The company achieves this through a focus on building a culture of respect, trust and integrity. The company has diversity programs, including five diversity councils designed to ensure an inclusive, engaging work environment. In addition to more traditional diversity business councils, SC Johnson recently launched five new support groups for: Parents of Teens; Parents of Special Needs Children; Elder Care Givers; Single Parents and Mature Workers. These will serve as resources for SC Johnson employees who are seeking guidance, education or a group of peers who can relate to or benefit from similar experiences.

A Continuing Commitment to Family-Friendly Benefits
One of SC Johnson's popular employee benefits is the company's Childcare Learning Center – built in 1985 as one of the nation's first childcare centers for the exclusive use of its employees and their families. Last year, the center underwent a 9,600-square-foot addition to continue to ensure that employees' children will not have to be placed on a waiting list. The 45,000-square-foot facility provides full-time, part-time, drop-in care supervision, education and summer camp.

SC Johnson's family-friendly benefits don't stop at childcare or with the company's generous maternity/paternity leave policies – new moms can take up to six months off. Programs range from a vacation resort for employees and their families, to paid sabbaticals, to flexible work hours, to summer hours, to on-site concierge services to a world-class recreational facility.

Recognition for Being a Great Place to Work
In September, AARP recognized SC Johnson as the number one company in the U.S. for workers over age 50. Also, SC Johnson recently made its 19th appearance on the "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers," according to Working Mother magazine. The company also was named to the "Corporate 100" list of top companies for Hispanic Americans by Hispanic magazine and has been recognized as a noteworthy company for diversity by DiversityInc.

About the Fortune "100 Best Companies to Work For" list
Job creation was weighted highly in deciding among the 406 companies that vied for a slot on this year's list. The 100 companies on the 2008 list added 67,000 employees to their payrolls in the past year and employ a total of nearly 1.6 million employees; up 16 percent from the number employed by companies comprising last year's list.

"The 100 Best Companies to Work For" list is compiled for Fortune by Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz of the Great Place to Work Institute in San Francisco, based on two criteria: an evaluation of the policies and culture of each company, and the opinions of the company's employees. The latter is given more weight; two-thirds of the total score comes from employee responses to a 57-question survey which goes to a minimum of 400 randomly selected employees from each company. More than 100,000 employees participated in the survey this year, making it the most extensive employee survey in corporate America. It asks about things such as attitudes towards management, job satisfaction, and camaraderie within the organization. The remaining one-third of the score is based on the company's responses to the Great Place to Work Institute's Culture Audit, which includes detailed questions about pay and benefit programs and a series of open-ended questions about hiring practices, methods of internal communications, training, recognition programs diversity efforts and workplace culture.

SC Johnson is a family-owned and managed business dedicated to innovative, high-quality products, excellence in the workplace and a long-term commitment to the environment and the communities in which it operates. Based in the USA, the company is one of the world's leading manufacturers of household cleaning products and products for home storage, air care, personal care and insect control. The 122-year-old company, with more than $7.5 billion in sales, employs approximately 12,000 people globally and sells products in more than 110 countries.