Mill Steel Company Recognized by National Organizations for Workplace Flexibility and Effectiveness

DETROIT (Map) - DETROIT, Aug. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Mill Steel Company was named a winner of the 2008 Alfred P. Sloan Award for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility today, distinguishing the employer as a leading practitioner of workplace flexibility in Grand Rapids, Detroit and across the nation. Mill Steel Company was recognized at 2008 Sloan Awards luncheon on 8/14/08 at the MGM Grand in Detroit Michigan.

The Alfred P. Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility are part of the When Work Works project ( www.whenworkworks.org ), an ongoing initiative of Families and Work Institute, the Institute for a Competitive Workforce (an affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce), and the Twiga Foundation. Through When Work Works, these partner organizations provide research, resources, and recognition to employers nationwide, and share the results of research on creating effective and flexible workplaces that meet the needs of the 21st century.

Mill Steel believes a more fully trained and efficient work force means a more flexible work force. It means they can cover for one another when Life happens, because Life will happen, be it illness, a death in the family, doctor's visits, a school play, or a child's soccer game. They strive to meet the individual in the real needs of their every day lives. They have modified shifts and hours around family needs. They restructured their bereavement pay system to provide to team members with out of state or out of country family. Their training programs provide for those who cannot travel by bringing the training to them.

The Sloan Awards recognize organizations that are dedicated to making work "work" for both the employer and the employees. Representing employers of all sizes and all types, winners of this prestigious award not only offer excellent workplace flexibility practices, but they also use flexibility as a strategic business tool to enhance organizational effectiveness while also benefiting employees.

Tom Stanfield, People Development Director for Mill Steel said, "We don't want our Mill Steelers to ever have to make bad choices. A bad choice is choosing between working and going to the doctor, or between paying the bills and being able to attend a child's sporting event. Being in control of your own destiny means never having to make decisions you don't want to make, and that is what we want for our entire team: control of their destinies. We have seen our teammates through cancer, illness, and other tragedies, providing financial and job security. This is who we are. This is what we do every day, because we are a family."

"Employers must develop new recruitment and retention policies. Unprecedented conditions -- a multi-generational workforce, a shrinking labor pool and an increasing demand for skilled workers -- dictate that they do so," said Greg Roth, Senior Manager of Workforce Education Programs for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Institute for a Competitive Workforce.

The Michigan winners of the 2008 Alfred P. Sloan Awards for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility announced at the awards ceremony include:

Applications for the Alfred P. Sloan Awards were open to all organizations in Michigan with more than 10 employees that had been in business for at least one year. Applicants were evaluated in a rigorous two-step process, first comparing the employer's application to nationally representative data from Families and Work Institute's National Study of Employers, and then corroborating the employer responses through a survey of employees.

"Sloan Award winners have put into practice their bold ideas about how to make work work in the 21st century, and they have shown how they can support the needs of their employees while also making their organizations more effective and successful," said Ellen Galinsky, president of Families and Work Institute. Each of the 2008 Sloan Award winners will also be recognized nationally, including a full-page congratulatory ad in USA Today, and will be featured in the 2009 issue of the Guide to Bold New Ideas for Making Work Work, published by Families and Work Institute.

Michigan (statewide) is one of 30 select communities nationwide chosen to host and participate in the When Work Works initiative. Other communities participating are: Arizona (statewide); Atlanta, GA; Aurora, CO; Birmingham, AL; Boise, ID; Brockton, MA; Charleston, SC; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Dayton, OH; Durham, NC; Houston, TX; Lexington, KY; Long Beach, CA; Long Island, NY; Louisville, KY; Melbourne-Palm Bay, FL; Milwaukee, WI; Morris County, NJ; Providence, RI; Richmond, VA; Rochester, MN; Salt Lake City, UT; San Francisco, CA; Savannah, GA; Seattle, WA; Spokane, WA; Washington, DC; and Winona, MN.

For more information about When Work Works or the Alfred P. Sloan Awards, please contact Shanny Peer at (212) 465-2044 x 217 or at speer@familiesandwork.org.

ABOUT MILL STEEL COMPANY

Mill Steel Company is a family owned, Flat-Rolled Steel Service Center with corporate offices in Grand Rapids and additional manufacturing sites in Melvindale (Detroit area) and Windsor. Sales in 2007 were $210+ million. Addition to the Sloan Award, Mill Steel Company has been named as one of the "10 Best Places to Work" six years in a row by Michigan Business and Professional Association, and in 2005, 2007 and 2008 were voted "Best of the Best." www.millsteel.com

ABOUT WHEN WORK WORKS

When Work Works is a nationwide initiative to highlight the importance of workforce effectiveness and workplace flexibility as strategies to enhance businesses' competitive advantage in the global economy and yield positive business results. When Work Works is a project of Families and Work Institute in partnership with the Institute for a Competitive Workforce, an affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Twiga Foundation, with funding provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. For more information, visit www.whenworkworks.org .

ABOUT FAMILIES AND WORK INSTITUTE

Families and Work Institute (FWI) is a nonprofit center for research that conducts extensive research on the changing workforce, changing family and changing community. Founded in 1989, FWI's research typically takes on emerging issues before they crest. The Institute offers some of the most comprehensive research on the U.S. workforce available. For more information, visit www.familiesandwork.org .

About The Institute for a Competitive Workforce

The Institute for a Competitive Workforce (ICW) is a 501(c)3 affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. ICW promotes high educational standards and effective workforce training systems, so that they are aligned with each other and with today's rigorous business demands. Through policy initiatives, business outreach, and a strong grassroots network, ICW is finding solutions that will preserve the American workforce as this country's greatest business asset and its strongest future resource. For more information, visit www.uschamber.com/icw .

About The Twiga Foundation

The Twiga Foundation is dedicated to inspiring, promoting and maintaining a family consciousness at home, in the workplace and in the community. The Twiga Foundation acts as a liaison to key stakeholders in the When Work Works communities to address the issue of flexibility in the workplace. The Foundation helps build a broader leadership constituency for workplace flexibility within each community. For more information, visit www.twigafoundation.org .