Iceland Foods has been named one of The Sunday Times Best Places to Work in 2024.
The prestigious annual list recognises organisations with the highest employee engagement and wellbeing levels. Iceland and its sister brand The Food Warehouse were the only supermarket recognised as one of the best places to work, and were one of only 15 companies in the very big organisation category.
The Sunday Times Best Places to Work ranks organisations in six key areas including reward and recognition, information sharing, empowerment, wellbeing, instilling pride, and job satisfaction to highlight the UK’s top employers.
Iceland provides an array of benefits for colleagues from enhanced family-friendly policies – including enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption, fertility, neonatal and carers’ leave for all employees – and generous long-service awards, and has recently introduced healthcare schemes for all colleagues.
A real focus is put on supporting colleagues’ wellbeing through our Employee Assistance Programme and more specialist services, such as Alvie who support colleagues diagnosed with cancer. Employees also receive financial benefits such as an all-year 15% store discount and vouchers to spend in-store during the Christmas period.
The Iceland Group’s HR Director, Helen Tindle said: “It’s so important for us to look after our colleagues, ensuring they feel valued and have a sense of belonging in the Iceland family. This is why we invest for the long-term in driving colleague engagement and supporting career development.
“The biggest changes and innovations in our business are driven by colleague feedback and suggestions, with employee listening playing a huge role. We are proud to run annual Pulse surveys, Director listening groups, and dedicated colleague support services to learn more about what our teams want – helping to inform policy and shape our benefits package.”
Iceland secured its prime spot partly due to its dedication to personal development – recognising that continuous development is an important part of employees’ experience.
The entire workforce across nearly 1,000 shops and the Deeside head office have the opportunity to join ILM accredited talent programmes or award-winning apprenticeship schemes. The company has recently announced a new partnership with SCL professional to continue to ensure they invest in the very best apprenticeship programmes to help individuals grow within the business.
Executive Chairman Richard Walker said: “Without the dedication and passion of our colleagues, Iceland wouldn’t be the growing, responsible business it is today – 53 years after it was founded. The culture makes Iceland, and it’s our colleagues who live and breathe that culture day-in, day-out.
“The focus on doing right by our colleagues is what has led us to this accolade of being one of the best places to work in the UK.”
