San Luis market a fun workplace where caring for other employees, their families, and the community is fostered

BY NANCY GILKEY, SUN STAFF WRITER

FIRST PLACE
Large Business Category
Food City #163

Food City No. 163 in San Luis is a fun workplace where caring for other employees, their families and people in the community is fostered, making the company this year's recipient of the Workplace Excellence Award in the Large Business category.

Food City is owned by the Bashas family, which treats its employees not like workers but like family, wrote Store Director Ramiro Marquez in his nomination form. And "they have great benefits, great pay and a great working environment" to boot.

Employment engagement,
communications and morale

"We can best demonstrate employee engagement, communications and morale with the effort and collaboration that it took when all members of Store #163 made it possible for a little girl's wish to come true," wrote Chuck Meegan, vice president of Retail Operations for Food City Western Division.

Ten-year-old Jennifer Morales, daughter of a Food City employee, has cystic fibrosis and a very poor prognosis, he said. She expressed a wish to go to Disneyland "before anything happened," so store members rallied together to solicit donations and hold fundraisers.

"Jennifer's dream came true in May of this year," Meegan said. "Jennifer, two sisters and her mom flew to Disneyland with all expenses paid and money to spend. A basket of her favorite toy princesses was waiting at the hotel, compliments of Disneyland."

Not only did such an accomplishment require employee engagement and communication, it offered an added boost to the "great morale in the store," he said.

Fun in the workplace

Food City members as well as the community participate in the store's celebrations. Members' birthdays, for example, begin with an announcement and "Las Ma–anitas (a traditional Mexican song), followed by happy birthday wishes and a cupcake with a candle. "It's so much fun that customers have requested this for a loved one," Meegan wrote.

Other fun events include the quarterly Customer Service Award celebration, complete with a white tablecloth dinner, individual awards, music and more. And the company makes the Dia de los Ni–os celebration "the best day for all kids with two party jumpers in the parking lot, clowns, face-painting, members as Disney characters."
Employee benefits

Part-time as well as full-time employees receive a generous benefit package that includes a defined benefit pension plan, a 401k defined contribution plan, comprehensive health coverage, member grocery discount, tuition assistance, paid time off, and more.

Executive perspective

"Basha's is a 75 year-old, privately held family-owned company that has maintained a unique culture based on respect for the family and the individual," wrote Michael E. Gantt, senior vice president of human resources, in the nomination application.

Though Basha's employs over 14,000 members in over 160 stores, each store is in many ways run almost as an individual entity, he said. "That climate of intimacy allows our members to really feel that they are important parts of a small business family and as such more in control of the things they do each day."

Nancy Gilkey can be reached at
ngilkey@yumasun.com or 539-6851.