Desjardins a Leader in Employee Health and Well-being

Launch of the Québec Entreprise en santé standard, an ISO-type certification

Montréal (Québec), February 25, 2008 – The overall issue of health and well-being is one of Desjardins Group’s key concerns in terms of human resources. On the occasion of the launch of Québec’s new Entreprise en santé (healthy business) standard, and as the largest private employer in the province, Desjardins is proud to note that more and more companies are focusing on the health and well-being of people in the workplace.

“The rising costs of healthcare services, the ageing population and society’s new trend towards better health and healthy lifestyle habits show how important it is for companies to invest, as Desjardins is doing, in the health and well-being of their employees,” stated Jacques Dignard, Senior Vice-President, Human Resources at Desjardins Group.

Desjardins has been developing an innovative approach to overall health management since 2003. This approach aims to make employees more aware of the importance of developing healthy lifestyle habits and includes various preventive activities, such as encouraging people to maintain a healthy diet and to exercise regularly. An annual flu shot campaign and a program that reimburses the cost of physical activities also form part of Desjardins’ health-oriented initiatives.

In addition, in 2007, Desjardins conducted a comprehensive review of all its disability management methods, so as to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and quality of interventions and thereby increase satisfaction levels among employees and managers. Among other things, Desjardins proposes a personalized support program for employees who are off work for health reasons.

“Through its actions to improve overall health management, aimed primarily at creating a unique and distinctive work environment, Desjardins Group stands out as a leader among major Québec companies in terms of employee health and well-being,” concluded Mr. Dignard.

About Desjardins Group

Desjardins Group is the largest integrated cooperative financial group in Canada, with overall assets of $147 billion, as at September 30, 2007. It comprises a network of caisses, credit unions and business centres in Québec and Ontario, and some twenty subsidiary companies in life and general insurance, securities brokerage, venture capital and asset management, many of which are active across the country. Drawing on the expertise of its 40,000 employees and the commitment of nearly 6,800 elected officers, Desjardins offers its 5.8 million individual and corporate members and clients a full range of financial products and services. Its physical distribution network is complemented by leading-edge virtual access methods.

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Nathalie Genest
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