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Programs Help Retirees Stay
Connected to Companies
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Source: Martha Quetsch, staff writer, The Doings
Newspaper, July 15, 2004
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Companies, especially large corporations, give employee
benefits. But current staff members aren’t the only
ones on the receiving end.
Much like they do health or life insurance, companies
offer retiree programs that also serve as a great
promotional tool. Companies can keep a list of retirees
and send invitations to them by mail to participate with
other former employees in bus or theater outings, picnics
or even trips to Europe.
“It’s a great way to recruit new employees if
family members and friends have a good feeling and
experience at a retirement party or other event,”
said Renee Mula, communications director at Employee
Services Management Association.
The professional nonprofit organization, based in Oak
Brook, helps its 2,000 members provide retirees with
fellowship and networking opportunities. Offering retiree
programs certainly isn’t a new concept, Mula said.
“They evolved probably from a loyalty to employees
who have worked for the company a long time,” she
said.
ESM recently conducted a survey among its nationwide
members about the subject. The survey revealed 46 percent
have retiree programs.
‘We knew it was a tried and true service that our
members had been offering for years,” Mula said.
For members including Ace Hardware’s corporate
headquarters in Oak Brook, ESM provides articles on
retiree benefits.
“If they need ideas, we can put them in touch with
others who have done the same thing,” Mula said.
“We also have a list of suppliers (travel agents and
others) who offer discounts.”
Argonne National Laboratory, which employs nearly 3,500
people from area communities, is committed to keeping
workers connected with the company. Newsletters help to
spread the word about company programs for retirees. The
company sends 3,100 newsletters to retirees each month
and mails its weekly employee newsletter to former
employees who request it.
“We let them know about seminars that different
scientific divisions are sponsoring with speakers to talk
about the research they are doing,” said Donna Jones
Pelkie, Argonne public relations staff member. “We
want to keep the retirees involved in the lab with people
they know—and to keep them tied in.”
Argonne also has a retiree group, The Pioneers, whose
members worked for the company for 30 or more years.
“Employees often have a sense of camaraderie and
want to stay in touch with what is going on with the
company,” Mula said.
Other companies are realizing that retiree events are a
positive addition to the list of employee benefits.
Hinsdale Hospital, which employs 1,900 people,
doesn’t have a retiree program in place, but one is
in the works, public relations director Mark Paulson
said.
“We want to show how much we value employees,”
he said.
The program likely will include company-sponsored
retirement parties for longtime employees leaving the
hospital, he added.
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