People

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Our People

Hormel Foods strives to be a company where people aspire to work and never want to leave. We have a tradition of fostering long-term careers that starts with promoting from within and is supported by competitive compensation, benefits, training and a safe work environment.

Through Our Way, we promote an engaging work environment where:

• Continuous improvement and innovation are a way of life;
• All employees trust and respect one another;
• Employees can flourish with fair compensation, equal opportunity, a safe work environment and a balance between work and personal life;
• Teamwork and positive attitudes are commonplace; and
• Everyone maintains a focus on customer and consumer satisfaction.

Employees by Job Type

We had 18,500 employees in fiscal year 2007 and 19,000 employees in fiscal year 2008 at 44 U.S. facilities. Our team consists of full-time and part-time hourly and salaried employees. In fiscal years 2007 and 2008, hourly employees were 85 percent of our team. Salaried employees were 15 percent of our team in fiscal years 2007 and 2008. Among all employees during these fiscal years, 34 percent were covered by collective bargaining agreements. Throughout the year, we supplement our workforce with temporary employees, which averaged 4 percent in 2007 and 2008. Additional information about the demographics of our team is below.

Employee Tenure

As a company, we measure an element of our success on the tenure of our employees. We are honored to report that 54 percent of all employees had five years or more of service at Hormel Foods in fiscal year 2008. Within this group, 15 percent had 20 years of service and 4 percent had 30 or more years of service. This tenure is also relevant for our 31-person officer team with an average of 26 years of service.

Workplace Conduct

We value the individual at Hormel Foods. Our policies protect each employee's right to a workplace where laws are followed and respect is shown. This creates an environment where people want to work and do not want to leave.

Human Rights Statement

Hormel Foods conducts business responsibly and ethically. We respect international human rights principles aimed at promoting and protecting human rights, including the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Fair Employment Practices

Hormel Foods complies with the age limits set forth by local, state and federal laws. We do not hire anyone working at our processing facilities under the age of 18. Our policies state that we do not tolerate child labor or forced labor at our facilities, which includes the use of forced prison labor. We avoid significant risk related to child labor and forced labor through adherence to company policies and employment laws in the United States.

Employee Engagement

Our company believes engaged employees are more productive, committed and conscientious. They tend to draw more satisfaction from their job, which generates a higher level of customer satisfaction. Employee engagement is achieved through communication and ongoing assessments.

The Process and the Results

In order to measure and improve employee engagement, Hormel Foods uses a well-defined employee engagement improvement process. This process, now entering its fifth year, includes an employee survey, group feedback meetings and the development of action plans. The main benefit of this process is to identify and implement changes needed to maintain a highly engaged work environment.

The employee survey starts a new engagement-improvement cycle every two years. A few months after the survey is administered and managers have shared the key survey results with their teams, feedback meetings take place across the company to identify the key opportunities for improvement. Subsequent work sessions generate and use employee feedback and ideas to develop action plans. These action plans can take the form of workgroup or company-wide initiatives.

As a result of the engagement improvement process, leaders are developing a greater appreciation of candid feedback and discussions. Employees are seeing changes to include flexible work arrangement/schedules, improved communication and recognition, enhanced support for career advancement and increased training opportunities. As we continue this process, we will reap the benefits of engagement in more satisfied employees and customers.

The Hormel Foods process will enter its third cycle with another survey scheduled to be administered in April 2009. Both Jennie-O Turkey Store and Diamond Crystal Brands have continued their engagement improvement processes. Dan’s Prize started their first cycle in November 2007.

Information Sharing

Ongoing communication with employees and retirees is a fundamental component of Hormel Foods’ culture. To this end, the company relies upon three primary vehicles for communication — “Xchange,” the company intranet; Inside Hormel Foods, the company magazine; and company Roadshows.

• Xchange — Daily news stories keep this communication tool fresh and employees informed about the latest happenings from around the company. It also offers a platform for employees to access directories, reference policies or benefits information and a variety of software systems needed to perform daily tasks.
• Inside Hormel Foods — A monthly magazine with the latest announcements, awards and news at Hormel Foods’ parent-company and subsidiary facilities. The publication offers a way for employees and retirees to stay informed and connected to the top stories from around the company.
• Roadshows — Annually our chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer and members of our executive management team travel to about one-third of our U.S. manufacturing locations to deliver an update about the company’s performance during the past year. During the event, awards for safety and quality excellence are presented to locations that excelled in these areas, when applicable. In addition, these Roadshows allow employees to ask questions and provide feedback and suggestions on ways to continue improving the company.