Amid the fears and economic cutbacks facing corporate America comes a glimmer of good news. Working Mother magazine on October 9 released its 16th annual list of the "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers," a compilation of corporations that best recognize the value and needs of working families. The complete list is available in the October issue of Working Mother, on newsstands this week, and at www.workingmother.com.

"With so many layoffs, those who remain work longer and harder hours with fewer resources. Today's technology expects us to work 24/7, and working mothers get hit the hardest," says Carol Evans, CEO/president for Working Mother Media, which publishes Working Mother.

She points out that in the wake of September 11, work/life initiatives take on an even greater meaning with grief counseling, employee assistance and other programs.

Working Mother magazine will honor those companies that understand the value of human resources and help employees find solutions to balance work and home life at an awards ceremony at the WorkLife Congress in New York on October 10 (www.worklifecongress.com). The Congress has re-focused its agenda to those critical issues human resource executives now face in the aftermath of the tragedy.

Significant changes in the extensive application process for the 100 Best Companies this year focused on how well companies provide benefits to workers at lower income and job levels. According to Working Mother Editor Sharlene Breakey, companies face an ongoing challenge to provide an equitable distribution of flexibility and perks.

"We raised the standards for the 100 Best this year, evaluating companies on how far benefits reach throughout the ranks. And, as always, we took a hard look at the areas of (a) percentage of women in workforce, (b) child care support, (c) flexibility, (d) leave for new parents, (e) work/life balance and (f) advancement of women," Breakey explains. "The 2001 list of 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers represents the best of the best."

Top 10

Ten companies are applauded for ranking the highest overall:

Bristol-Myers Squibb, New York (first time on Top 10; 3 years on list)
Citigroup, New York (11 years on list)
IBM, Armonk, New York (on list for all 16 years)
Fannie Mae, Washington, DC (8 years on list)
Marriott International, Washington, DC (11 years on list)
Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, New York (first time overall)
PricewaterhouseCoopers, New York (6 years on list)
Procter & Gamble, Cincinnati, OH (15 years on list)
Prudential Insurance, Newark, NJ (12 years on list)
Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX (6 years on list)

"The fight to attract and retain skilled quality workers continues to be critical for American businesses," adds Evans. "Employees often report that flexibility and child care programs keep them from accepting other job offers. Therefore, leaders recognize that work/life programs have tremendous financial impact in terms of productivity and employee retention, and that a commitment to helping employees balance their personal responsibilities is a win-win."

Industry Leaders

Editors also identify eight INDUSTRY LEADERS in the areas of Consumer Products (Johnson & Johnson), Financial Services (Citigroup), Health Services (Novant Health Systems), Manufacturing (Ford Motor Company), Pharmaceuticals (Bristol-Myers Squibb), Professional Services (Prudential) and Technology/Information Services (Texas Instruments).

Best in Class

Using employee survey results in addition to research and information, Working Mother editors also highlight as BEST IN CLASS those companies that excel in specific scoring categories of Child Care (IBM), Flexibility (Hewlett-Packard), Parental Leave (Merrill Lynch), Work/Life Balance (Bank of America) and Advancement for Women (Booz-Allen & Hamilton).

Family Champion

Acknowledging that the most effective work/life initiatives originate from the top, Working Mother singles out pharmaceuticals giant Johnson & Johnson (New Brunswick, NJ) as this year's FAMILY CHAMPION, for its long record of providing flexibility, child care and programs to advance women. Thanks to CEO Ralph Larsen, every manager, professional and sales employee has a wide range of flex options, and the company frequently holds national seminars on promoting work/life balance.

Small Business Champion

Working Mother also recognizes the efforts of America's small businesses, which employ more than half of the workforce.

"While companies with 500 or fewer workers may not always be able to match the breadth of programs put in place by large national firms, there are ways to support employees' worklife needs," says Evans.

Lebenthal & Company (New York) is saluted as this year's SMALL BUSINESS CHAMPION, highlighting CEO Alexandra Lebenthal's introduction of telecommuting, job-sharing and phase-back programs for new moms and dads at the 96-person brokerage firm.

In addition, technology firm GreenPages (Kittery, ME) and Johnson & Company, a virtual pr/marketing agency (Salt Lake City, UT) have both been named to the magazine's SMALL BUSINESS HONOR ROLL.

Companies To Watch

And, as a nod to those that are making strides to improve work-life benefits, but did not achieve 100 Best status, Working Mother also points out four COMPANIES TO WATCH: Alcatel, Kinko's, St. Mary's Hospital and Visa for their wonderful efforts. Last year, editors highlighted American Airlines and Republic Bancorp to watch, and both made this year's 100 Best list.

About Working Mother

Working Mother magazine, founded in 1979, reaches more than 3 million readers each month, and is the only national business magazine written for executive and entrepreneurial mothers. Its signature "100 Best Companies for Working Mothers" has been issued for the past 16 years. Working Mother is published by Working Mother Media, which also operates Working Woman magazine, the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE) and its Executive Female bimonthly, and the annual Work-Life Congress.

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