Monsanto Canada Makes Canada's Best Diversity Employers List for 2016


WINNIPEG, MANITOBA--(Marketwired - Feb. 24, 2016) - Monsanto Canada's strong commitment to diversity and inclusion across all its business functions has netted the sustainable agriculture company a spot on Mediacorp's list of Canada's Best Diversity Employers for 2016.

Canada's Best Diversity Employers, now in its 10th year, recognizes employers across Canada that have exceptional workplace diversity and inclusiveness programs. The competition examines a range of diversity initiatives in a variety of areas, including programs for employees from five groups: (a) Women; (b) Members of visible minorities; (c) Persons with disabilities; (d) Aboriginal peoples; and (e) Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered/Transsexual (LGBT) peoples.

"Making a balanced meal accessible to everyone, and doing it in a sustainable way, requires a wide range of ideas and resources," said Michiel de Jongh, president and general manager of Monsanto Canada. "Our business success depends on our strong ongoing efforts to attract, retain and develop talented employees with broad experiences and backgrounds that bring new and innovative ideas and viewpoints to our organization. We are thrilled to be recognized for these ongoing efforts."

Monsanto Canada was recognized for many of its diversity efforts but specifically for identifying gender diversity as a priority area for its Canadian business and for setting diversity goals around the sourcing, development and retention of female employees. To aid in these efforts, the company formed a diversity sub-committee from its Canadian leadership team in 2013 and later introduced an Employee Diversity and Inclusion Council (EDIC) to create a liaison between the diversity initiatives outlined by senior leadership and the broader Monsanto Canada employee base.

Among Monsanto's key successes stemming from this work:

  • 53% of all hires in 2015 were female, up from 49% in 2014;
  • 56% of all Sales Team hires in 2015 were female, up from 50% in 2014;
  • 63% of all promotions in 2015 went to females, up from 46% in 2014 and 38% in 2013;
  • High potential females were identified and development opportunities aligned with their career goals were developed;
  • Ensured diverse candidate pools and diverse hiring panels for all roles.

The complete list of Canada's Best Diversity Employers for 2016 will be published in a special magazine insert with the Feb. 24th edition of the Globe and Mail. The list can also be accessed online at http://canadastop100.com/diversity/

Headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Monsanto Canada Inc. is part of the larger global Monsanto Company. Monsanto is an agricultural company committed to bringing a broad range of solutions to help nourish our growing world. We produce a variety of seeds ranging from fruits and vegetables to key crops - such as corn, soybeans, canola and cotton - that help farmers produce abundant and nutritious food. We work to find sustainable agriculture solutions that help farmers conserve natural resources, use data to improve farming practices, use water and other important resources more efficiently, and protect their crops from pests and disease. Through programs and partnerships, we collaborate with farmers, researchers, nonprofit organizations, universities and others to help tackle some of the world's biggest challenges.

To learn more about Monsanto, please visit: www.monsanto.ca or follow us on Twitter @MonsantoCda.

Contact Information:

Monsanto Canada
Trish Jordan
Director, Public and Industry Affairs
204 985-1005
www.monsanto.ca