4 FL Employers On Fortune’s 100 Best Companies List

FLORIDA — Four companies with headquarters in Florida have been named to Fortune’s 100 Best Companies To Work For list.

Fortune’s list is based on a Great Place To Work survey that measures how employees feel about where they work, as well as the key behaviors that drive trust in management, connection with colleagues and loyalty to the company.

Companies in Florida included on the list and their ranking in the top 100 are:

Baptist Health South Florida, ranked No. 61, headquarters in Coral Gables

The health care chain provides services in four counties in South Florida and online via Baptist Health Care On Demand. This is its 24th year on the Best Companies to Work For list. Since 2001, Baptist Health’s Scholars Program has funded over 4,500 employees who want to pursue education at a local university or go further in the nursing field. “I love the diversity, I love the care we have for each other and the community,” one Baptist Health employee said. “The work-life balance is amazing and not just something we say we have, we actually practice it.”

The Breakers Palm Beach, ranked No. 65, headquarters in Palm Beach

This is the first year that The Breakers Palm Beach has been on the Best Companies list. Wellness is a priority for Breakers staff, and leadership implemented a program at the staff's request called My Bio, which incentivizes employees to achieve their personal wellness goals. The resort also started a wellness program geared toward people of color on staff, as research showed those communities were less engaged with the existing programs. “Every day is a lucky day for me to work here at the hotel. I want my kids to also work here when they are grown up,” said one employee.

DHL Express U.S., ranked No. 88, headquarters in Plantation

Even with 110,000 employees, the transportation company has managed to establish a culture of pride and community with an engaged and loyal workforce. Well-being is a priority. The Fit for Work program offers activities that help employees both at work and in their personal lives, such as exercise classes, vaccinations, cancer screenings, and stress-reducing activities. To encourage diversity, the company established a worker panel, which includes a range of voices and experiences that bring the needs and feedback of often underrepresented groups to the company’s attention. A standard unconscious bias training program was also made mandatory to all HR teams and offered to all employees. “I have yet to run into anyone who would say ‘It's not my job,’" said one employee.

Publix, ranked No. 91, headquarters in Lakeland

This grocery retailer operating in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia has been on the Best Companies to Work For list for 26 years. No Publix location has ever had a layoff. Eligible employees can become company owners in one of three ways: through 401(k) contributions, purchasing stock, and the employee stock ownership plan. Full- and part-time associates working an average of 10 hours per week can access some tuition reimbursement in approved fields and for associate degrees or GEDs. Publix partners with Urban League affiliates to provide career development courses for associates.

Related: Publix Founder's Dream Becomes Nation's Largest Employee-Owned Company

In the confidential survey using a five-point scale, employees answered 60 questions about their organization’s culture. Two open-ended questions were also included.

Specifically, the questions dealt with whether leaders are accessible, communicate honestly and clearly, and if their actions match their words. Employees also weighed in on whether they feel respected as individuals, if they receive training benefits, appreciation, support for their well-being and opportunities to contribute.

The results are calculated across demographic groups and roles within each organization to assess how widely the employee experience is shared.

Employers are asked for feedback, answering six questions to suss out which have developed the most generous, caring and innovative programs to meet their employees’ diverse needs both at and away from work, as validated by the employee survey results.