Community Leaders

C M Y K 4 COMMUNITY LEADERS WINNIPEG FREE PRESS - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2019 C M Y K The Winnipeg-based company has grown substantially since it was originally founded by brothers Frank and Jerry Arnold to haul grain and other agricultural products from their Plumas area farm. It now hauls everything from fresh produce to home electronics and building materials and employs a few hundred people here in Manitoba and several other provinces to haul goods to customers in both Canada and the U.S. One thing that hasn't changed, though, is that it remains a family-run business. Brothers Fred and Gary, whose father and uncle founded the company, oversee the current operation in their roles as President and Vice-president respectively while a third generation of Arnolds actively participate in the day-to-day business. And the focus is very much the same as it was 60 years ago: providing reliable service to the community. "It's always been very Manitoba-based, very community-based," says Jeannie Arnold, the company's Manager of Driver Recruiting and Development. "I think that came from my grandfather and his brother growing up in a small town, having a farming background and that community base. From the get-go…they worked with a lot of different people in the community to bring them onboard to haul their freight or be drivers for them. It was instilled in the business from the beginning and it kind of stayed with my dad (Gary) and his brother and I think with me and my cousins." Another hallmark of Arnold Bros. has been the company's commitment to being an industry leader when it comes to driver training. As part of that commitment, it offers a mentorship program that provides all new drivers to the industry with six to eight weeks of in-cab instruction with a driver/ mentor and a certified instructor, a tour of the company's terminal and facilities as well as testing on Hours of Service and Dangerous Goods regulations. "It's a great tool because there's not a lot of companies out there that do something like that," Arnold says. "The driver/mentors have a lot of knowledge and good people skills. They're really looking to help new drivers get into the industry and share their knowledge with them." In addition to the mentor program, Arnold Bros. has a driver recognition program that provides eligible Owner-Operators with safety bonuses if they avoid preventable accidents. Arnold Bros. was also one of the first Manitoba- based transportation companies to begin using Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) when it began installing them in its vehicles in 2014. The devices are now installed in every single one of its trucks. "We kind of saw that as an opportunity to get people onboard and get them interested," Arnold says. "It's really improved the way our people do their job. It's made them safer on the road. It's also made it easier for them to record the information they need to. They don't have to take a bunch of time to record their day in a book now." That commitment to driver safety and education extends beyond Arnold Bros.'s own team of professional drivers. It developed the Arnold Bros. Transportation Academy (1998), a driver training school which currently offers an entry level professional truck driver training program for new Class 1 drivers who wish to enter the trucking industry. The Academy also offers customized training to existing Class 1 professional drivers, as well as other industries on a host of topics including safe driving techniques, pre and post trip inspections, air brake inspections, and advanced backing techniques. "I think it really came down to the fact our company saw a need for people to be safe and successful," Arnold says. "With the Academy, we're able to train people properly and by giving them those skills and the confidence in those skills…they're able to go out on the road in any situation and know to react properly." Arnold Bros. also prides itself on being concerned about the wellbeing of not just its drivers, but its office staff as well. It instituted employee-led safety and health and wellness committees that focus on what the company can do to make people feel more comfortable at their job, whether its on the road or in the office. Some recent initiatives instituted by the two committees include a community garden, a program that allows employees to exercise on company-owned bicycles during lunch or coffee breaks and several nutrition-related offerings. The company has also been a big promoter of Healthy Fleet, an app that provides health tracking and coaching services and is designed to encourage office staff and drivers to maintain a healthy lifestyle. "We want to make sure everybody's happy and healthy and wants to come to work," Arnold says. ❚ The company takes great pride in giving back to the community. That includes everything from financial support for a number of charitable causes (the company holds regular fundraising functions such as blue jeans Fridays and staff barbecues) to participating in activities such as a Christmas hamper program and various initiatives such as Gowns for Grads, the Santa Claus Parade and Winnipeg Harvest's Grow-A- Row campaign. It's also been an active participant in the Special Olympics Convoy to raise money and awareness for Special Olympics Manitoba. One of the causes that has been particularly close to the hearts of Arnold Bros. staff has been the Plaid for Dad campaign. Launched in 2015, the campaign helps raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer research. Thousands of workplaces and individuals across the country raise funds through donations and various fundraising events for the campaign, which takes place the Friday before Father's Day. Arnold Bros. was named the 2018 Plaid for Dad national workplace champion for its efforts this past year, which included having a company tractor and trailer decaled in plaid and showcasing them at various public events. "We've been involved in doing all these fun things, but it's also for a great cause and we're really trying to get the awareness out there," says Jeannie Arnold, the company's Manager of Driver Recruiting and Development. "Having our tractor and trailer out there, they've become a moving billboard for the cause which is really awesome." Arnold says the company's philanthropic ways can be traced all the way back to 1958 when it was founded by her grandfather, Frank Arnold, and his brother Jerry and it catered mostly to farmers and the agricultural industry. Company's charitable roots run deep Not only is Arnold Bros. Transport Ltd. an industry leader in terms of driver training and employee health and wellness, it is also leading the way when it comes to community involvement. Last summer, a small group set up a makeshift camp in the churchyard at Broadway and Osborne, drawn together in part for reasons of safety and access to the long-standing food bank run out of the church's hall. The food bank has since relocated and the campers dispersed, but for employees of Great-West Life, whose head office is located directly across the street, those few weeks reinforced the importance of volunteering for organizations like Winnipeg Harvest, a founding member of Food Banks Canada and the Manitoba Association of Food Banks (MAFB), through which nearly 400 agencies (including soup kitchens, food banks and youth programs) re-distribute surplus food to hungry families all over Manitoba. "The importance of Winnipeg Harvest cannot be overstated," says Barbara Bebee, Group Customer Director of Health and Disability for Great-West Life, and Captain of her department's food drive fundraising team. "Vulnerable Manitobans may be less publicly visible during our extreme winters, but the need never goes away." Keren Taylor-Hughes, Chief Executive Officer of Winnipeg Harvest, says people are going hungry in Manitoba every day. "More than 64,000 people use food banks each month in our province, of which more than 42 per cent are children," Taylor-Hughes says. "In Winnipeg, 536 children require the services of a food bank every day. We welcome supporters like Great-West Life employees, who see the disparity and are committed to helping Winnipeg Harvest fight hunger and feed hope." Last year alone, Winnipeg Harvest moved more than 13 million pounds of food through its warehouse to food banks across the province, to which Great-West Life employees in Manitoba contributed 35,683 food items. And while Winnipeg Harvest's immediate goal continues to be feeding hungry people, Taylor-Hughes says, ultimately the organization wants to end stigma and take hunger out of the poverty equation altogether. "This is not an exercise in just giving money," Bebee emphasizes. "We buy food items to maximize every dollar collected. Many of the experienced teams maximize their fundraising efforts by negotiating with various suppliers. Participants say it is shocking to see how quickly rising food costs erode their buying power each year, and it is humbling to think someone who is receiving Employment and Income Assistance trying to afford healthy foods versus convenience foods, which are typically less expensive on a food budget of less than $4 a day. They are driven to redouble their efforts the next year." Great-West Life has held corporate food drives in some capacity for over 30 years. In Winnipeg, the first took place in 1986, shortly after establishment of Winnipeg Harvest in 1984. Bebee has been Captain of her team's food drive since 2011 and her department places in Great-West Life's top three contributors each year, measured by Total Food Items Collected and Most Food Items Per Capita. Ira Lester, Group Customer Strategy & Initiatives Planning Analyst, joined the insurer in 2013 and immediately began volunteering alongside Bebee. Over time, Lester and Bebee helped to evolve the local initiative into Great-West Life's National Corporate Food Drive (NCFD) held annually for two weeks in May. In 2016 Lester took on the duties of NCFD Champion, facilitating food drive activities for all Great-West Life teams across the province. When asked how he balances it with his regular duties, he says compassion is part of the human spirit, but it's important to do things to keep it fresh and alive, adding: "It's just right to be involved and generous towards others. We have a responsibility to work together for the greater good." Lester credits Great-West Life's leaders for giving employees flexibility to participate and a platform to make it happen. For example, last year, Lester organized an HR-approved three-hour commitment to volunteer at Winnipeg Harvest for the two teams who collected the most food items. Bebee and her winning colleagues were able to tour the facility, sort and package food donations and witness the impact of their contribution first-hand. "We couldn't do this without the ground roots support of coworkers like Lester," Bebee adds. "They are totally engaged. When they learn about the face of hunger in Manitoba – that 42 per cent are children, and that there is an alarming increase in the number of seniors who are using food banks in Manitoba, their motivation goes through the roof." "We're already starting to plan for 2019," Lester smiled. ❚ Helping build community leaders Cathy Weaver, Senior Vice-President, Human Resources, Canada, Great- West Life lauds Barbara Bebee, Director of Health and Disability and Ira Lester, Group Customer Strategy & Initiatives Planning Analyst, for being community leaders "who truly live Great-West Life's commitment to being actively involved in the communities where we live and work, and to building stronger communities together." In working with Winnipeg Harvest, United Way and other organizations, she says Great-West Life provides opportunities for employees like Bebee and Lester make positive contributions to their communities, supporting education, health, the arts, social services and more. "We are committed to providing an inclusive, accessible environment, where all employees and customers feel valued, respected and supported. We are dedicated to building a workplace that reflects the diversity of the communities in which we live and to creating an environment where every employee has the opportunity to reach their potential." FEEDING HOPE THROUGH WINNIPEG HARVEST ARNOLD BROS. LEADING THE WAY IN DRIVER TRAINING BY JIM TIMLICK Arnold Bros. Transport Ltd. has been a driving force in Manitoba's truck transportation industry since the business was formed back in 1958. Phone: 204-257-6666 Website: arnoldbros.com Email: customerservice@arnoldbros.com Arnold Bros. and its employees have been industry leaders when it comes to community involvement and take great pride in giving back to that community. Great-West Life 2018 National Corporate Food Drive stats: collected over 54,761 food items, 116 teams and offices participated across Canada, and which equals 63,667 lbs of food for food banks across Canada. More than 39,000 of those items were in the top 10 most-needed category. All donations go to local food banks in the participating areas. 9 elephants! That's as much as the weight of "To explore new career opportunities at Great-West Life, please visit greatwestlife.com/common/about-us/careers." Above: Winnipeg Harvest CEO Keren Taylor-Hughes (centre) welcomes food drive supporters like Ira Lester and Barbara Bebee in helping Winnipeg Harvest feed hope.

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