News that Hormel Food Corp. had dished out nearly $5 million to its employees on Monday is good news for everyone, says Sandy Forstner, executive director of the Austin Area Chamber of Commerce.
"It's indicative of their hard work and success over the past year," Forstner said.
Hormel CEO Jeff Ettinger said the bonuses — $250 per employee — were to thank the company's 19,500 workers for their hard work during the past few years to help the company achieve its strong performance in tough economic times.
Hormel's fourth-quarter net income rose 17 percent, company officials reported last month.
"Their business model is just incredible, obviously," Forstner said, "and they're sharing that with their employees."
ADVERTISEMENT
The day before Thanksgiving, the company distributed its profit-sharing checks for the year, with hourly and salaried employees receiving more than $16 million.
About 1,500 workers at the Austin facility received a check equivalent to about 2.2 times their weekly base pay.
So will those employees keep that money close to home, and share the wealth with local businesses?
"I expect they might," Forstner said, "and that's certainly good news."
