Psychologically Healthy Workplace Awards

2003 Best Practices Honors Program

The sixteen Best Practices highlighted here came to light as part of the American Psychological Association's Best Practices Honors--a national program that recognizes companies for innovative programs and policies that support psychologically healthy work environments.

Each of the organizations honored was nominated for the national recognition by the psychological association in the state where they reside. Each honoree had already been selected as a state-level Psychologically Healthy Workplace Award winner and was nominated for the national honor because of one particularly unique or innovative workplace practice that stood out from among the rest.

2003 Honorees

Click on the links below to read more about the Best Practices of the 2003 Honorees.

Making Childcare CAREFREE

New York--Some of the employees at Computer Associates (CA) say they decided to have more children because they could count on the childcare offered by the company. Read more

Blurring the Lines of the Corporate Hierarchy

California--From the most senior attorney to the most junior secretary, everyone gets the same amount of respect at the law firm of Rogers, Joseph, O'Donnell & Quinn Lawyers. The secretaries don't just receive job evaluations, they design their own performance reviews and can evaluate the attorneys as well. Read more

All for One and One for All

Virginia--If any of the 2,100 employees at SRA International, Inc. ever have a serious illness that keeps them from work longer than their sick days allow, they can count on their co-workers to cover them, and not just their workload. Read more

Empowerment Through Communication

Connecticut--Success at this Connecticut company is spelled c-o-m-m-u-n-i-c-a-t-i-o-n. Reflexite Americas' employees are awarded stock annually and vote on all key issues, but what makes these owner-employees really special is the level of communication that is encouraged between all employees, at all levels and at every aspect of running the business. Read more

Strengthening Morale in a Diverse and Changing Workplace

Kentucky--Monopolies are truly a thing of the past at BellSouth's Kentucky division. The company has not only transitioned from a longstanding monopoly environment, it has implemented a new policy that has adopted the spirit of a representative democracy. Read more

Using the Team Approach to Team Building

Arkansas--Like most companies, the Arkansas Educational Television Network (AETN) has a human resources department responsible for conducting searches for new hires, processing resumes, conducting reviews and interviews. But after a comprehensive strategic planning review, the network's new Executive Director Allen Weatherly figured the old approach to hiring could be transformed to encourage his 88 employees to become more involved with departments other than their own at the network. Read more

Building a Sense of OHANA

Hawaii--Nordic Construction, Ltd. has found a way to turn a negative situation into a positive one for employees injured on the job. Read more

Sunny Work Environment Gets Employees' Tails Wagging

Vermont--Work and life balance and corporate responsibility are an important part of the philosophy at Small Dog Electronics, Inc. in Waitsfield, Vermont. Read more

Letting Employees Go Gently

Illinois--It's not often that a company is thanked by employees for the way it handles the unpleasant task of downsizing. But that's what happened at DSM Desotech. Read more

Flexible Shift Schedule Allows for Varied Workforce

Idaho--When it comes to juggling work schedules, Melaleuca, Inc. keeps a lot of balls in the air so its employees can focus their attention on the balancing act between work and family life. Read more

Goal of this Team: Score Happy Diners

Pennsylvania--You can't say teamwork enough at Melrose Diner, Inc. in Pennsylvania, where the philosophy is teams, teams and more teams. Read more

Everyone Benefits with Instant Mentors

New Jersey--Hunter Douglas, Inc. is proud to fall far below the national average--in employee turnover that is. Read more

Employee Opinions THAT COUNT

South Carolina--Most business owners would be fearful of the results of an anonymous employee opinion survey. But not Southeastern Freight Lines, which not only surveys its employees, but asks them to review the survey results and help find solutions to problem areas. Read more

The Freedom to Fly, Learn and Grow

Texas--While Southwest Airlines gives its customers the "Freedom to Fly," the company helps its employees learn to spread their own wings and fly through higher education. Read more

Highlighting Individuals Can Make the Whole Team Shine

Washington--Washington State University Vancouver (WSU) struggled with how to maintain a sense of community among employees when the reality was the ever-expanding campus is now larger than some towns. The campus has rapidly expanded from one building 14 years ago to the current 340-acre campus. Read more

Free On-site Health Clinic Raises Morale

Utah--ARUP Laboratories' free on-site clinic has done more than keep its employees healthy--it has kept the company healthy, too, by raising employee morale and retention. Read more

"Winning this award has validated the hard work all our staff put into their work every day. In an industry that has high staff burnout and turnover and is usually in the press for failing, Green Chimneys strives to change that paradigm. We celebrate our successes and learn from our failures."

Joseph A. Whalen
Executive Director, Green Chimneys

Click here to download the 2003 Best Practice Honors Brochure (PDF, 6.9MB)