France - A ‘Great place to work'

The Great Place to Work Institute, an American NGO specialised in employees well-being and satisfaction, studied 51 French companies for the first time in 2002 and published in October 2002 in L'Expansion the list of the 20 best places to work in France. 250 employees from various functions of the French Cement Business Unit (1,840 people in 2001) were questioned on 57 points in five areas: Solidarity, Pride, Fairness, Respect and Management Credibility. With 88% of positive answers to “Lafarge is a great place to work”, Lafarge Cement is ranked 7th on the list, with the following comment: “Despite long hours, Lafarge Cement is appreciated for its human management, its proximity to local realities, and the good variable remuneration it offers.” The American magazine Fortune published the results in January of their annual survey of the top 100 best European companies to work for. For the first time Lafarge was selected; Fortune ranked Lafarge as one of the 10 great companies. We intend to spread great place to work surveys or similar initiatives to other countries in 2003.