Fortune begins its annual ranking of the best American companies to work for with the observation that the pressures of globalization are making it more difficult than ever for employers to treat their employees well—General Motors and medical benefits, for example. “In 2001, thirty-three companies on our list paid 100 percent of employees' health-care premiums. Today only fourteen do. Just since last year, twenty-seven companies on the list have reduced what they pay in health-care premiums. Pensions are a similar story: The number of companies on the list offering a defined-benefit pension to new employees has dropped from forty to twenty-seven in only three years. Sorry, the expectations of even a great employer have to be recalibrated.”
While we would argue against the idea that global competition is the reason many companies are cutting back, we agree, as Fortune points out, that the trend of dwindling benefits provides a perfect opportunity for top companies to create a competitive advantage when it comes to drawing talent.
Companies in this article are judged on a number of factors including pay, benefits, turnover, and the percentages of minority and female employees. A nifty tool on the page allows you to search employers by state.
The best company to work for? Genentech, the California biotech concern. Says Fortune: “What's better than being a valued member of a cancer-fighting team? Having a great time while you're at work. (It doesn't hurt that 95 percent of workers are shareholders—and they've benefited handsomely from the soaring stock.)”
Interestingly absent from the list is Google, which, with its gourmet cafeteria and do-no-evil mission statement, is often held up as the model employer for the up-and-coming tech generation. Competitor Yahoo was ranked 73rd.
Here are a few other tidbits from companies that made the list. Lowest turnover: Alcon Laboratories, 2 percent; largest percentage of women employees: Bright Horizons, 96 percent; highest percentage of minority employees: Baptist Health South Florida, 70 percent; highest annual average pay: Russell Investment Group, $575,373; highest percentage of job growth, Quicken Loans, 60 percent.
Comparing the 2006 version with 2005, we can see that a lot of change has taken place. In 2005, Wal-Mart was the top employer, but the Bentonville big daddy didn't crack the top 100 this year. And Genentech, this year's highest rated, wasn't on the list last year. Oil and related companies that scored well in 2005, including Exxon, Marathon, and ConocoPhillips, are MIA in 2006—hey, what happened to those record profits? And you can guess what happened to General Motors and Ford, which last year ranked third and fourth, respectively. The moral of this story: If you like where you work, don't take it for granted.