In early 2021, after a year of prolonged stress brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, news outlets began reporting on a workplace phenomenon known as The Great Resignation, a period during which the nation’s “quit rate” reached a 20-year high, according to the Pew Research Center.
At the time, U.S. workers cited their reasons for leaving their jobs as low pay, inflexible work hours, child care challenges and a lack of opportunities for career advancement.
But a new term started popping up late last year: The Great Detachment.
Amid ongoing fluctuations in the job market and broader economy, workers have become less inclined to change employers, leading many to feel “stuck” in their current roles. More companies are requiring employees to return to the office, despite workers preferring to utilize a hybrid arrangement or just work from home altogether.
In addition to The Great Detachment and shifts in work location, other trends and challenges in workplace culture for 2025, as noted by research from Harvard Business Review, Gallup and Deloitte, include filling the experience gap, tackling loneliness and inclusion, boosting motivation and human performance, and navigating the rise of artificial intelligence.
Plastics News‘ annual ranking of Best Places to Work highlights the plastics industry companies that are tackling these issues head-on and, as a result, have the happiest and most satisfied employees. (Several organizations on the list boast annual voluntary turnover of less than 5 percent, and some even have 0 percent turnover.)
The Best Places to Work program is handled by independent research partner Workforce Research Group. Interested employers fill out an in-depth questionnaire about their company and policies, and their employees are also asked to complete a survey that includes questions about role satisfaction, benefits and supervisor relationship.
Our 2025 list includes 21 of the best companies to work for in the plastics industry, separated by processors and suppliers.
Supporting happy, healthy teams
Since the onset of the pandemic in 2020, conversations around mental health in the workplace have increased in frequency and priority.
Compared with last year’s respondents, more companies this year have training in place to look for and deal with signs of mental stress, fatigue and burnout among their team. Some companies noted they have quarterly or annual training, while others have monthly safety reminders that include both physical and psychological safety.
Through performance management processes and pulse surveys, one firm on the list identifies themes and individuals who may be experiencing these issues. Other companies have instituted training with law firms or employee assistance programs.
“Leaders are provided with one-on-one coaching and resources to work through with employees, such as our performance analysis tool that identifies root causes and solutions to performance- and behavioral-related concerns,” said one company, which also utilizes a self-service e-learning platform to support employee well-being.
Despite some companies having up to 90 percent of workers working remotely, the organizations on this year’s list have established activities and programs to keep all employees engaged, from daily/weekly virtual meetings with cameras on to team-bonding events outside the workplace.
Among all winning companies this year, 100 percent of them coordinate fun activities for their team, 90 percent formally recognize individual employee milestones such as birthdays and work anniversaries, 81 percent have a structured system for recognizing achievements, and 86 percent have a formal grievance procedure for employees who feel they have been treated unfairly based on race, identity or beliefs.
To attract a diverse, inclusive workforce, some companies work with local high schools to hire young apprentices and seek new hires at university job fairs. Others advocate for the younger generations to work with baby boomers to learn from one another.
Many of this year’s organizations have annual formal training on topics such as discrimination, moral behavior, racial sensitivity, sexual harassment and behavioral styles.
“Our strategy for building and maintaining a diverse workforce revolves around a simple yet powerful principle: respect. We treat every individual with dignity and fairness, regardless of age, race, background, appearance or personal style,” said one company.
Continuous improvement
Among all companies on our 2025 list, based on employee feedback, 95 percent of workers believe they go above and beyond for their organization, 91 percent feel enthusiastic about their work, 93 percent feel pride in saying they work for their organization, and 93 percent intend to remain at their current organization for the foreseeable future.
In terms of management benchmarks, 88 percent of employees said their managers recognize them when they do a good job, 93 percent believe they are treated fairly by their managers, and 91 percent believe their manager wants them to reach their full potential.
After receiving the results of their employee questionnaires, the companies on this year’s list intend to listen, reflect, and revise their current processes and benefits. As a result of previous feedback, organizations have increased starting pay, offered more flexible work hours, added more sick leave, increased internal communication and created ongoing technology training.
If your company is interested in learning more about the Best Places to Work program, then visit www.plasticsnewsbestplacestowork.com. Program registration is due in October.
To be eligible for the honor, companies must be publicly or privately held; be a for-profit, not-for-profit or government organization; have a physical operation in the United States or Canada; have at least 15 full- or part-time employees in the U.S. or Canada; have been in business for at least one year as of the program registration deadline; derive at least 50 percent of revenue from plastics-related operations; and be a plastics supplier or processor. Companies with 15-24 employees need an employee survey response rate of 80 percent or higher.