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First Union Selected for Working Mother 100; Announces Day Care Expansion CHARLOTTE - First Union Corporation was named today as one of the "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers" by Working Mother magazine, just months before the company is scheduled to open the expansion of its child development center in Charlotte, making it one of the largest on-site corporate day care centers in the country. Expansion of the First Union Leslee Lloyd Child Development Center to serve 144 more children will be complete in January, giving the center total capacity for 570 children. The center, located at the companys 8,000-staff Customer Information Center, consists of four separate pods, each operating as a separate unit with its own director and teachers. In addition to offering care for infants through preschoolers, the center has programs for school-aged children and dedicated back-up care for emergency use by parents who normally user other providers. It is managed by Bright Horizons Family Solutions. Last month, First Union also announced it would continue operating CoreKids, a 110-capacity day care facility in Philadelphia that it acquired through its merger with CoreStates Financial Corp. First Union employees in the Philadelphia area also have access to Kids First, a back-up care facility for 54 children. The company also operates a 72-capacity full service center in Roanoke, Va. Support for child care is only one criteria that Working Mother considers in compiling its list. Other criteria include pay, opportunities for women to advance, and family-friendly benefits. John Georgius, president of First Union Corporation, said these factors are increasingly important in recruiting and retaining quality workers in a tight labor market. First Union Selected for Working Mother 100 page 2 "First Union is experiencing such rapid growth that its become more important than ever for us to attract and keep the best talent," Georgius said. "To maintain our competitive edge, we must continually break new ground with innovative programs that make First Union a great place to work." One new benefit First Union introduced this year is a "paid time off" bank, created by adding together an employees former vacation allotment with his absence days. Employees now "own" all the time, so those who dont use all of their absence days now have more days to use for vacation. Employees working five days a week also now have 10 days of Family Care Time annually to care for sick family members. It can also be used as paid adoption or paternity leave, or as a paid extension to maternity leave. For parents who have beginning readers, First Union introduced a new benefit this month called Reading First. The free kit for employees includes a parents guide to encourage enthusiasm for reading, a resource list, cassette tape, reading journal and story book. Its part of the companys Reading First program, which encourages employees to read as volunteers in schools. First Union also offers a 10-part parent education series, "Parents At Work: Building Strong Families," delivered through classroom sessions, and all over the East Coast through the companys Employee Television Network. One of the companys most popular benefits is its paid-time-away-from work program, which gives employees four hours of paid time per month to volunteer in schools and education programs. Last year, 21,235 employees, or 45 percent of First Unions workforce, volunteered 753,221 hours. First Union has instituted several programs to help employees balance their work and personal lives. One example is LifeWorks, an employee resource and referral service. By calling a toll-free number, employees can get free, practical advice from experts on topics ranging from teenage peer pressure to affordable nursing care for elderly relatives. The company also offers flexible scheduling arrangements, such as flexible hours, job sharing or working from home. First Union Corporation (NYSE:FTU) is a leading provider of financial services to more than 16 million retail and corporate customers throughout the East Coast and the nation. First Union is the nations sixth largest bank holding company, based on assets of $229 billion as of June 30, 1998. --END-- |
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