Social Responsibility Report 2008

Social Responsibility Report 2008
Caring isn’t just good business…it’s our business
I’m not a big fan of buzzwords, but the idea of social responsibility is
something I’m definitely behind. Because at the heart of this popular
concept is giving something to the communities and individuals who
are touched by our business, and that’s something I care about deeply.
It’s also been part of how we do business at Walgreens from the
very beginning. Our company’s earliest leaders left us powerful lega­
cies in the form of the Walgreen Creed and the Four Way Test. Today,
we live those values as we try to do what is fair and beneficial to
others, whether that’s giving money to a community cause, reducing
our company’s energy consumption or seeking out diversity in our
potential employees.
In years past, we’ve done such things quietly. I don’t think we’ll
ever be a company that publishes dozens of press releases announcing
our different initiatives, but we are becoming more vocal and visible in
our outreach. For example, for the past three years, we’ve had motor
coach buses crisscrossing the country providing free health screenings
to the public. Last year, we expanded the program, dedicating an
additional bus to Puerto Rico and another to the National Urban
League. In 2008, the Take Care Health Tour expanded again, and
we now have 10 buses that will provide 1.5 million free wellness
screenings – for a total value of $35 million – in neighborhoods
where there are significant barriers to good medical care.
We’re always seeking these types of opportunities that allow us to
give to the people and communities we serve. It’s part of Walgreens
commitment as a pharmacy to accessible healthcare, and it’s our duty
as a socially responsible company.
This responsibility, however, is sometimes difficult. One of the
biggest challenges facing all businesses today is finding ways to limit
our carbon footprint and reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. As
you’ll see in the section, “Caring for our planet,” Walgreens has many
initiatives underway to do just that…but it is a continuous process,
not a problem that can be solved overnight.
This report is just the starting point of a regular update on our
social responsibility efforts. We’ll report back on our progress, but until
then, thanks for your support of our goals and initiatives…and for
supporting Walgreens.
Sincerely,
Jeff Rein
Chairman and CEO
The Walgreen Creed
We believe in the goods we merchandise, in ourselves
and our ability to render satisfaction. We believe
that honest goods can be sold to honest people by
honest methods.
We believe in working, not waiting; in laughing,
not weeping; in boosting, not knocking, and in the
pleasure of selling products. We believe that we can
get what we go after and that we are not down and
out until we have lost faith in our ourselves.
We believe in today and the work we are doing,
in tomorrow and the work we hope to do, and in the
sure reward the future holds. We believe in courtesy,
in kindness, in generosity, in cheer, in friendship and
in honest competition.
Written by company founder Charles Walgreen Sr. in the early 1920s
AS A SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE COMPANY, WE SEEK…
> To balance the values of our economic growth, our
community service and our philanthropic commitments
> To find new ways to bring convenient, affordable, quality
healthcare to as many people as possible
> To respond to the needs of the diverse communities
we serve
> To minimize our environmental impact.
THE FOUR WAY TEST
OF THE THINGS WE THINK, SAY OR DO
1.
2.
3.
IS IT THE TRUTH ?
IS IT FAIR TO ALL CONCERNED ?
WILL IT BUILD GOODWILL AND BETTER FRIENDSHIP ?
4.
WILL IT BE BENEFICIAL TO ALL CONCERNED ?
Adapted from the Rotary International version by Charles Walgreen Jr.
Caring for our planet
At Walgreens, we are very concerned about how our
business impacts the environment and are working
to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and limit
our carbon footprint. We’re shrinking our direct
emissions through the use of ultra­low sulfur and
soy­blended fuels and by purchasing flexible­fuel
company cars. To lessen our indirect emissions, we’re
ramping up our efforts to install solar panels and
high­efficiency lights, and are working with power
companies in different states to turn down the lights
and air conditioning in stores during peak­use
periods. We’re designing a store that uses nationally
accepted standards developed by the U.S. Green
Building Council for high­performance sustainable
buildings. And we continue to find ways to reduce our
product packaging, and to divert waste from landfills
by recycling or reusing materials ranging from inkjet
cartridges to shrink­wrap to store shelving. It all adds
up to a commitment to not just protecting, but to
improving, the world we live in.
The forecast calls for solar panels and energy savings
Solar panels are increasingly seen as a solution to rising
energy costs, and with good reason. Aside from the significant
financial benefits, using clean, sustainable energy from the
sun allows us to make a substantial difference in the fight
against climate change.
Currently, Walgreens is the only drugstore to benefit from
the cost­efficiency of solar panel systems on such a large scale.
At the end of 2007, 17 stores and two distribution centers had
the systems, powering about 20 percent of each location’s elec­
tricity needs. In 2008, we’ll further lessen our indirect emissions
by adding panels to approximately 45 stores in Hawaii and
Oregon, and to a distribution center in Connecticut. We’ll also
evaluate expanding this technology into Arizona. Similarly,
skylights and special lighting systems that take advantage of
sunlight and reduce the need for artificial light have been
installed in a few test stores in California.
Helping to set the standards for sustainable retail
A decade ago, companies that wanted to build “green” buildings
were on their own to determine exactly what that entailed. Add
a skylight? Use low­emission paint? Today, Walgreens is one of
70 retailers – and the only drugstore – working with the U.S.
Green Building Council to provide feedback on proposed stan­
dards known as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design). This certification process provides independent, third­
party verification that a building project meets the highest green
building and performance measures. Drawings are currently
underway for our first LEED­certified store in Mira Mesa, Calif.
“The lessons we learn from this first LEED store will have
tremendous impact,” says Paula Hubert, senior project architect
in Facilities, Planning, Design & Engineering. “Ultimately, we
hope to apply some of the LEED principles to all our stores –
both old and new – to make them more environmentally friendly.
We’re also going to help more businesses go green by providing
LEED with input on how they can make their standards more
user­friendly for other retailers.”
3
Caring for our planet
Stocking the shelves with earth­friendly products
The popularity of green products is on the rise and
Walgreens is working hard to accommodate this
growing demand with items ranging from Energy
Star­rated CFL light bulbs (pictured at right) to
reusable, recyclable polypropylene shopping bags
(pictured below). The potential to help conserve
resources, reduce waste or otherwise help the environment varies
by product, but the bottom line is consistent: Customers want to
live a green lifestyle, and Walgreens is happy to help them do so.
Here’s a sampling of our green inventory:
• Rechargeable batteries and chargers
• A reusable, recyclable shopping
bag featuring the Walgreens “W”
• Two brands of natural household
cleaners
• Energy Star­rated CFL light bulbs
• Water purification pitchers and refills
• Natural skincare items, as well as
organic shampoos and conditioners.
“Downsizing” isn’t always a dirty word
Downsizing isn’t something you want to read about your company
doing – unless it involves reducing packaging. Over the past cou­
ple of years, we’ve eliminated the box from some of our bottled
over­the­counter medications when the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) allowed us to do so, even if comparable
branded items come in a box. Later this year, lighter bottles for
our private brand water will hit the stores. There will be 4.3 gram
difference between our current water bottle and the new packag­
ing, which is a 25 percent reduction in plastic and will make our
bottles one of the lightest on the market. The product label also
encourages customers to recycle the bottles, which are clearly
marked as being made from recyclable plastic.
Our efforts to make product packaging as environmentally
friendly as possible don’t stop with downsizing, though – our
Purchasing department is working with vendors to eliminate
PVC (polyvinyl chloride) packaging as much as possible. PET
(polyethylene terephthalate) and HDPE (high­density polyeth­
ylene) plastics are the preferred alternative, and we estimate
at least 90 percent of our private brand products already use
these materials.
“We want to be a retail leader in the greening of America,”
says Dave Van Howe, corporate vice president of Purchasing.
“We’re working with our vendors to use less fuel and packaging,
and we’re constantly on the lookout for other opportunities to
preserve resources while offering our customers the products
they want and need.”
4
High tech lights cut costs and save energy
Thanks to high­efficiency fluorescents, we’re saving more than
$5.7 million in energy costs this year. These lights, now in
more than 6,000 stores, also lower our energy consumption by
63.4 million kilowatt­hours and reduce carbon dioxide emissions
by 109 million tons. That’s equivalent to avoiding the carbon
dioxide emissions of over 9,000 cars annually.
But our light savings don’t stop at the ceiling. All new
stores feature LED (light­emitting diode) lighting in their refriger­
ation cases (pictured above), which use sensors and dimmers
to reduce the amount of time display cases are fully lit and cut
our energy consumption. These new lights are also better for
the environment because they contain no mercury and last
much longer. “The next step is to auction the LED lighting
contract for both new and retrofit applications,” says Menno
Enters, national energy manager in Construction & Facilities
Management. “Ultimately, our goal is to have LED lights in as
many coolers as possible.”
Our fleet has the green light to keep on truckin’
We all know that each time we drive to work we have a negative
impact on climate change. And with more cars on the road than
ever, it’s not surprising that the U.S. Department of Energy
reports that between 1990 and 2006, harmful carbon dioxide
emissions from transportation rose 25.4 percent.
Walgreens is doing its part to bring those numbers down.
Already, our entire fleet of 600 tractor/trailer semis uses ultra­
low sulfur diesel or soy­blended fuels, putting us way ahead
of the U.S. government’s deadline for converting all fleets to
low­emission fuels. This replaces more than 1 million gallons of
fossil fuel gas with cleaner air­burning fuels. We also have 150
flexible­fuel company cars, primarily used by district staff, so our
drivers can fill up with ethanol blends of gasoline.
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Caring for our planet
Expanding the ways we’re shrinking our carbon footprint
We constantly review all our operations for opportunities to
reduce our carbon footprint and improve our energy efficiency.
In addition to the efforts discussed in depth on these pages,
we have more than 100 environmental projects underway. Here
are a few highlights.
• We perform off­peak deliveries whenever possible so our trucks
avoid traffic congestion and unnecessary idling in traffic jams.
In addition, we use automatic engine shut­offs that turn off the
engine after five minutes of idling.
• We’ve increased our fleet’s fuel efficiency with converted trans­
missions, a tire­check program and on­board computers that
monitor speed and idle time. Our trucks are also equipped with
cruise control systems, which ultimately improve gas mileage.
• We prohibit trucks from idling at our distribution centers.
• We use central control systems, smart breakers and other ad­
vanced technology to conserve energy in our distribution centers.
• We work with states – four now and more in the future – to
reduce our power needs during peak periods when there’s a
lot of stress on the grid.
• We use rechargeable batteries for distribution center equip­
ment and vehicles.
• We recycle commercial equipment batteries, cardboard,
shrink­wrap, glass and light bulbs from our distribution
centers. Many of these things are recycled from our store or
support facilities as well. Our stores also recycle cell phone
batteries and cell phones to protect the ecosystem.
• We pursue smart energy design and building practices that
meet or exceed energy usage and conservation guidelines set
by the industry and the government, and we specify equip­
ment that meets or exceeds energy code requirements.
• We’ll debut our first store with a plant­covered rooftop in
Chicago this year. These “green roofs” absorb less of the
sun’s heat, keeping buildings cooler and saving energy. If all
goes as planned, we’ll create more green roofs in the future.
• Selected stores have energy management systems.
• We retrofit our open coolers and added doors to reduce
energy consumption.
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Reduce, reuse and recycle
While “reduce” is today’s green buzzword, recycling and
reusing materials also contribute to a healthier planet. Here
are the straight facts on just a few of Walgreens efforts to
minimize waste.
Cardboard and shrink­wrap
In fiscal 2007, Walgreen stores and distribution centers (DCs)
together recycled a total of 156,000 tons of cardboard and the
DCs recycled 422 tons of shrink­wrap. Together, this would
save enough energy to power about 33,000 households.
Cardboard recycled by distribution centers – Tons in thousands
(FISCAL YEAR)
40
36
32
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
Printer cartridge refill and recycling
Since 2006, we’ve been the only drugstore chain to refill or
recycle printer cartridges for our customers. Currently, we refill or
recycle approximately 150,000 cartridges a week. That means
Walgreens keeps almost 8 million cartridges annually from going
into landfills, each of which would take more than 100 years
to decompose.
Fixture recycling
Approximately 30 percent of our general fixtures – from aisle
markers to conveyor belts – are reused when a store is closed,
and 100 percent of our computer equipment finds a new home.
When something can’t be reused, we like to donate it to organi­
zations such as Goodwill, Habitat for Humanity or The Salvation
Army. “Thrift stores love our shelves,” says Dan Manning, senior
project manager for technology in Construction & Facilities
Management. “And we love helping them out.”
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Caring for our neighbors
The heart of our business is pharmacy. It’s been that
way for 107 years, and it’s why much of our community
outreach revolves around providing access to needed
medical services. For example, our Take Care Health
Tour will provide 1.5 million free health screenings
to people this year, and Walgreen employees will
offer education and advice to thousands more at
community health fairs. But our outreach isn’t
limited to healthcare. In 2007, we worked with the
nation’s largest network of food banks to provide
8 million people with food or toiletries. We also
supported communities and individuals affected
by disasters ranging from tornadoes to tanker fires.
Serving customers is our business, but serving our
communities is a commitment we take seriously.
Take Care Health Tour screenings save lives
In 2008, we’ll provide 1.5 million free health screenings
thanks to Walgreens Take Care Health Tour. That’s equivalent
to offering one free screening to every resident of Phoenix.
The Tour’s 10 wellness buses offer free glucose, total
cholesterol, blood pressure, body mass index, waist circumfer­
ence and bone density screenings, for a total value of $115 per
person or $35 million annually. These tests target some of the
nation’s most pressing health conditions, including hypertension
(high blood pressure), which is more prevalent in older adults,
and diabetes, which is increasing rapidly among minorities.
And because the buses visit neighborhoods where residents
have limited healthcare resources, they offer early detection of
deadly diseases to some of the estimated 40 million U.S. adults
unable to afford needed medical care.
“These buses have the potential to impact the quality of
life for thousands of people across the nation,” says Marc Morial,
National Urban League CEO and president. “The National
Urban League is pleased to partner with Walgreens to sponsor
a bus and offer these free screenings and health information
to people who otherwise may not have access to these basic
health resources.”
One person touched by the Tour is Sam Michael, who
says that without Walgreens he would have eaten himself to
death – literally. In July 2007, Michael drove by a Toledo
Walgreens and saw that the Take Care Health Tour bus
outside the store was offering free health screenings.
The result of Michael’s blood glucose test was a life­
threatening 417, four times higher than what’s considered
healthy. Less than 24 hours later, he was in the emergency
room. There, he learned the dizzy spells he’d attributed to
stress had likely been caused by high blood sugar and that
he may have already experienced organ damage as a result.
Thanks to medication, a rigorous diet and exercise,
Michael’s Type 2 diabetes is now under control. “I owe it
all to Walgreens,” Michael says. “If it weren’t for that screen­
ing, I’d have never known I was a walking time bomb. I owe
them my life.”
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Caring for our neighbors
Health fairs fare well
From San Francisco to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and in dozens of
communities in between, we’ve provided health education and
wellness screenings through community events. In San Francisco,
we co­sponsored a health expo attended by 4,500 people that
featured former President Bill Clinton as a guest speaker. In
Puerto Rico, more than 16,000 residents attended the two­day
Festival of Second Youth where we offered free health screen­
ings and sponsored three presentations, including one by Eileen
Ortega, Puerto Rico Central district pharmacy supervisor.
“Health fairs are a great way to expose people to Walgreens
and the benefits of community pharmacy,” says Kermit Crawford,
senior vice president of Pharmacy Services. “But the best part is
knowing we’re supporting our communities.”
Our stores bring jobs and an economic boost
Almost one­third of Walgreen stores are located in areas desig­
nated by the government as New Market Tax Credit neighborhoods,
which means they have a low median income and a high per­
cent unemployment rate. People living in these neighborhoods
fill most of the 30 or more jobs each store creates. In fact, over
65 percent of our job applicants live within five miles of the
store where they apply.
Our employees’ wages will, in turn, benefit the local economy,
along with the tens of thousands of dollars in sales tax revenue
generated by a typical store. The bottom line? Every Walgreens
supports its community by improving the local economy.
From tomato soup to toothpaste, our donations help millions
Last year, Walgreens provided approximately 8 million individ­
uals with food or personal care items – the rough equivalent to
helping all the residents of Arizona and New Mexico. At the
same time, we kept more than 5.6 million pounds of product
out of landfills across the country.
How’d we do it? Simple – our distribution centers donated
discontinued and distressed products to America’s Second
Harvest, a nationwide network of food banks. And in California,
Florida and Nevada, test programs are underway to collect
additional donations from our stores.
Walgreens donations, which are screened for safety,
range from a scratched box of cereal to a discontinued SKU
of shampoo. While food is always appreciated, our non­food
donations are especially valuable because toiletries and
household items can’t be purchased with food stamps.
“Because of Walgreens, kids received notebooks, pens
and markers,” says Judith Gatti, executive director of the
Daily Food Bank in Miami. “Imagine parents’ relief that their
children would have needed school supplies. And everyone
needs shampoo, brushes, cleaning supplies and other house­
hold items. Walgreens has truly identified itself as an excellent
corporate citizen that cares about those less fortunate and
contributes to their health and well­being.”
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Caring for our neighbors
Walgreens is a wellness resource
Carrollton, the New Orleans neighborhood where we celebrated
our 6,000th store opening (pictured below), is like thousands
of other communities where Walgreens has become a wellness
resource for people with unmet healthcare needs. Over 32 per­
cent of our stores are located in federally designated medically
underserved areas. These stores provide residents with informa­
tion on the health issues that disproportionately affect their lives
and act as an important link to the medical community.
“As we continue our post­Katrina recovery, access to quality
healthcare services remains a critical challenge and priority,” said
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin. “By opening its 6,000th store in
New Orleans and focusing on our continuing healthcare needs,
Walgreens is demonstrating its commitment to our city and region.”
LED readerboards publicize Amber Alerts
When a child goes missing or is abducted, every minute counts,
and publicizing critical details to the public can help authori­
ties find the missing child more quickly. Amber Alerts, which
automatically run on our LED readerboards nationwide, have
been credited with the safe return of 377 abducted children
since the system began in 1997.
“I can’t think of a more important way to leverage our
stores’ visibility and assist law enforcement than to reunite a
child with a parent,” said Ken Corin, Store Operations vice
president. “We’re also looking into using our readerboards for
additional messaging, such as severe weather warnings, that
could benefit our communities.”
In 2007, more than 80 Amber Alerts appeared on our
readerboards detailing the car model, color and license plate
involved with missing or abducted children. Walgreens is
committed to continuing to use its technology and convenient
locations to help bring missing children home.
12
Disasters come in all sizes
When a disaster such as a blizzard or a hurricane strikes,
Walgreens is often the last business to close its doors and the
first to reopen. For example, as wildfires ravaged Southern
California in October 2007, we kept every store open.
“We are first and foremost a pharmacy,” says Mark Wagner,
executive vice president of Store Operations, “and it is our
responsibility to provide pharmacy services along with basic
necessities – water, batteries, bandages – during our patients’
greatest moments of need. Our first priority is always the safety
of our employees and our customers, but as long as it’s safe for
our stores to be open, we’ll be there.”
Extreme crises like the wildfires are, thankfully, unusual
situations. Most disasters are much more personal – they won’t
make the news in the next city, but they’re just as devastating
as a national crisis to those involved. And that’s where Walgreens
comes in. Here are three of hundreds of examples where we
helped a community recover from tragedy.
• When a tornado ripped through Enterprise, Ala., Walgreen
employees handed out free water, batteries and flashlights.
Behind the counter, pharmacy staff called insurance compa­
nies for overrides to refill lost prescriptions and provided
emergency medication to patients from the competition,
which remained closed.
• After the I­35 bridge collapse in Minneapolis, Ross Hotovec,
store manager at 1133 Robert St. S. in St. Paul, Minn., went
immediately to the Red Cross to offer Walgreens assistance.
For the next three weeks, Hotovec delivered bandages, hydro­
cortisone and latex gloves for the divers searching for victims.
• Two weeks before Christmas, an oil tanker crashed and ignited
in Everett, Mass., burning three buildings to the ground and
leaving 18 families homeless. Walgreen employees assembled
comfort kits containing basic toiletries and Walgreen gift cards.
The store also collected clothing donations from customers for
the fire’s victims, and employees bought Christmas gifts for one
of the families instead of having their annual gift exchange.
13
Caring for our people
At Walgreens, we believe the best measure of social
responsibility is reflected in how we treat our people
and by the opportunities we offer them. For example,
we are the first company to design and build a
distribution center where more than 40 percent of
the workforce has a physical or cognitive disability.
We also help hundreds of student­employees attend
pharmacy school through our educational assistance
programs, and offer minority students early career
experience through INROADS and Career Explorers.
And our aggressive growth plans equal plenty of
promotion opportunities. At Walgreens, we believe our
226,000 employees are our most valuable resource, and
we are committed to being a place where employees
of all backgrounds can build a successful career.
“This is a business, not a charity”
When Randy Lewis, senior vice president of Distribution &
Logistics, proposed a new design for our next generation of
distribution centers (DCs), the payoff was clear: a 20 percent
improvement in productivity. One year after the first of these
DCs opened in Anderson, S.C., it seems very likely that goal
will be met once the facility is running at peak volume.
Already this spring, Anderson is expected to surpass the
productivity of several older DCs.
That’s a return­on­investment any shareholder can get
behind. But the Anderson DC is special for another reason –
196 employees, approximately 40 percent of its workforce,
have physical or cognitive disabilities. As far as we know,
no other company has ever designed or built an entire facility
with the specific goal of side­by­side inclusion.
Ultimately, the new systems created for Anderson have
made the work easier and more efficient for everyone. All the
employees with disabilities are meeting or exceeding goals,
and many are the most productive workers in the building.
“This is a business, not a charity,” says Lewis. “Our
employees with disabilities earn the same pay and benefits
as other employees for the same work.”
Our second “next­generation” distribution center is
scheduled to open in Windsor, Conn., in 2009. And thanks
to Anderson, the groundwork has been laid for a new model
of inclusion.
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Caring for our people
Educational assistance makes pharmacy school more affordable
No matter what your major, a college education isn’t cheap –
PharmD students, for example, will pay between $4,000 and
$37,000 for tuition and fees their first year. To help qualified
pharmacy students finance their education, Walgreens gave
$9.5 million in pharmacy educational assistance in fiscal
2007. Approximately 42 percent of our educational assistance
students are minorities, and 63 percent are female.
Walgreens also provides financial support to all of the
nation’s 99 accredited pharmacy schools and in 2007, made
a special $1 million grant to the new College of Pharmacy
at Chicago State University (pictured below) on the city’s
South Side. Over the next five years, that grant will fund
recruitment programs designed to encourage students to
choose a pharmacy career.
Introducing students to pharmacy school…and Walgreens
Each summer, 50 high school students from Chicago and
St. Louis experience what it’s like to go to college and work in
a Walgreen pharmacy. These students are part of our Career
Explorers program, a collaboration with the Chicago College of
Pharmacy at Midwestern University and St. Louis College of
Pharmacy. Now in its eighth year, this program has produced
16
a substantial number of students who enter pharmacy school
or continue to work as technicians in our stores. It has also
introduced minority students to a career in pharmacy at a rate
that’s higher than typical pharmacy school enrollment.
WOMEN
ENROLLED IN
PHARMACY DEGREE
PROGRAMS, 2006
64%
WOMEN IN
ST. LOUIS COLLEGE
OF PHARMACY
CAREER EXPLORERS
PROGRAM, 2005
76%
MINORITY STUDENTS
ENROLLED IN
PHARMACY DEGREE
PROGRAMS, 2006
11%
MINORITIES IN
ST. LOUIS COLLEGE
OF PHARMACY
CAREER EXPLORERS
PROGRAM, 2005
56%
WOMEN IN
CHICAGO COLLEGE
OF PHARMACY
CAREER EXPLORERS
PROGRAM, 2006
62%
MINORITIES IN
CHICAGO COLLEGE
OF PHARMACY
CAREER EXPLORERS
PROGRAM, 2006
40%
Giving diversity room to grow
In fiscal 2007, Walgreens added approximately 25,000 jobs.
We are committed to seeking a diverse group of individuals to
fill those positions. Here are just a few of our recent efforts to
recruit more minority employees.
• An outreach program at Historically Black Colleges and
Universities has resulted in 945 hires over the past five years.
We have similar programs for predominately female schools
and Hispanic institutions.
• Each summer, we hire nearly
60 students through INROADS,
the largest nonprofit source
of salaried corporate and retail
internships for high­performing,
ethnically diverse college students.
We are one of only 35 major
businesses participating in
this program and are the
program’s second largest
retail account.
• Almost 50 percent
of our 2007 Business
Management Internship
Program participants
were minorities.
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Caring for our people
Expanded benefits serve employees on active duty
Nearly 400 Walgreen employees have been called to active
duty since 2001. During that same time period, Walgreens
revised its benefits to extend employee medical, prescription
and dental insurance coverage for up to 42 months to employees
called to active military duty, including the National Guard and
similar government organizations during times of national crisis.
In addition, those same employees are eligible for full salary,
less military pay, for 42 months from their last day worked
at Walgreens.
“One of the many stresses of being deployed is wondering
whether I will be financially secure, especially since my wife
is left alone to pay all the bills for over a year,” says Robert
Morrison, an MGT from Port Orchard, Wash., and a Navy petty
officer second class currently stationed in Afghanistan.
“Walgreens pay differential for active employees is a tremen­
dous help, as it alleviates some of the stress of being away
from home. It puts me in a better state of mind to concentrate
on my responsibilities here in Afghanistan.”
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Caring with our dollars
There are lots of opportunities to give back to the
people and communities we serve, but monetary
donations are one of the most basic ways of showing
that we care. That’s why we support a variety of
healthcare and education­related organizations that
have measurable results. We also sponsor three in­
store charity fundraisers each year, which raised over
$4.95 million in 2007 to fight cancer, heart disease and
diabetes. For well over 100 years, Walgreens has been
donating dollars to make a difference.
Supporting education, one student at a time
Jim Palos’ office in Manhattan is light­years away from his
hometown neighborhood. “I grew up in Chicago’s Humboldt Park,
where the drive­by shooting was perfected,” he says. “I’m lucky
because, thanks largely to Midtown, I had opportunities and life
is very different today.”
Palos is referring to the Midtown Educational Foundation
(MEF), a nonprofit organization that provides tutoring and
mentoring to inner­city students in grades 4­12. Since 1993,
Walgreens has given over $2.7 million to this organization as
part of the company’s commitment to education. In addition,
dozens of Walgreen employees have donated their time as
mentors and tutors to MEF students.
Today, Palos is one of many MEF success stories. A survey
of over 200 former MEF participants found that:
• 89 percent went on to college, compared to 20 percent of their
peer group (Hispanic and African­American students) nationwide.
• 98 percent graduated from high school, as opposed to
44 percent of their peers in Chicago’s public schools.
• When survey respondents are limited only to those who grad­
uated since 2000, 100 percent enrolled in college.
“On behalf of all the inner­city kids who attend our pro­
grams, we owe Walgreens a tremendous debt of thanks,” says
Glenn Wilke, MEF executive director. “Thousands of at­risk
kids have received tutoring and mentoring thanks to Walgreens,
placing them on a path to lasting success.”
19
Caring with our dollars
Focused support for health and education outreach
Charitable giving is a very competitive process at Walgreens.
“There are an infinite number of deserving organizations, but,
unfortunately, we have finite resources,” says John Gremer,
director of community affairs in Government & Community
Relations. “We have to make hard choices about where our
resources go. As a pharmacy
it’s important to focus first
on health­related issues.”
Where our charitable dollars go
Healthcare and education are top
priorities in how we donate our money.
As the chart (at right)
shows, the vast majority of
our donations go to causes
related to healthcare and
higher education. However,
even with set criteria for
determining what groups
get our hard­earned dollars,
saying no to a worthy cause
is always difficult.
Health and Social Services 55%
Campus Relations 27%
Education and Mentoring 11%
Civic and Cultural 7%
Other .4%
Employees drive success of in­store charity campaigns
Our in­store charity campaigns raised over $4.95 million in 2007
for the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association
and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation combined. The suc­
cess of these annual fundraisers is entirely due to our employees,
whose enthusiasm motivates customers to give year after year.
For some employees, such as Joel Burton, an EXA in
Greenville, Ohio, the cause is personal: Burton’s wife and
mother­in­law are both cancer survivors. That’s why he signed
up as a team captain for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for
Life and why he promotes the Hope Blooms with You fundraiser
each spring. Says Burton, “To get people to contribute I simply
say, ‘Have you ever wanted to help? Now you can.’”
Credits and Acknowledgements
PHOTOGRAPHY/ILLUSTRATION
Anni Betts: 3
Karen Campbell: 17
Getty Images: 13, 18
Michael Mauney: Cover, inside front cover, 2, 4, 5, 8, 10 (bottom),
11, 14, 15, 16, 19
David Rae Morris: Cover (bottom), 12
Michael Russell: 10 (top)
Amber Taylor: 20
PHOTO CAPTIONS
Cover (top to bottom): Rachel Cope, pharmacist at 8770 W. Pico Blvd.,
Los Angeles; Jeff Chadwick and Joseph Wu, corporate employees and
volunteer tutors, with Midtown Educational Foundation students;
Lee Brandao from the Moreno Valley, Calif., DC; Thomas Biggers,
production line employee at the Anderson, S.C., DC; Wardell Lewis,
MGT at 5300 Tchoupitoulas in New Orleans.
Page 2: Lee Brandao, maintenance function manager at the
Moreno Valley, Calif., DC
Page 8: Take Care Health Tour staff inside the bus
Page 10 (top): Take Care Health Tour staff at the San Francisco
health expo
Page 10 (bottom): Huntington Beach, Calif., store
Page 11: Otto Johnson, order picker at the Anderson, S.C., DC
Page 12: Wardell Lewis (with umbrella), MGT at 5300 Tchoupitoulas
in New Orleans
Page 14: Luann Bannister, HR generalist at the Anderson, S.C., DC
Page 15: Angie Mackey, career outreach coordinator at the
Anderson, S.C., DC
Page 16: Chicago State University students
Page 17: Brandon Mayberry, MGT at 2301 Lakeland Drive in Dallas
Page 19: Volunteer tutors Jeff Chadwick (rear), manager of BDM
process integration in Marketing Services, and Joseph Wu, architec­
tural coordinator in Facilities, Planning, Design & Engineering, with
Midtown Educational Foundation students
Page 20: Oklahoma City employees
We can’t respond to every e­mail, but we want to know what
you think of this report. Please send your comments to
social.responsibility@walgreens.com
This report was published in April 2008 by the
Walgreen Co. Government & Community Relations department,
104 Wilmot Road, M.S. #1444, Deerfield, IL 60015
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY REPORT PROJECT TEAM
Liz Muhler, writer and project manager, Walgreens
Bradley Evans, concept and design, Anonymous Design, Inc.
PRINTING
Anderson Lithograph/Cenveo, Los Angeles
21
Caring for our planet in action
The paper utilized for this report is certified by the Forest Stewardship
Council (FSC), which promotes environmentally appropriate, socially
beneficial and economically viable management of the world’s forests.
This report is printed on paper which is certified by Green Seal, and
by Smartwood for FSC standards. Mohawk Paper manufactured this
paper entirely with non­polluting, wind­generated energy and it contains
100 percent pulp derived from post­consumer recycled fiber. Natural
resource savings from using recycled post­consumer waste fiber in lieu
of virgin fiber for this report include:
203.67 trees preserved for the future
588.13 lbs. waterborne waste not created
86,515 gallons wastewater flow saved
9,573 lbs. solid waste not generated
18,848 lbs. net greenhouse gases prevented
144,268,800 BTUs energy not consumed
Savings from the use of emission­free, wind­generated electricity:
9,793 lbs. air emissions not generated
Displaces this amount of fossil fuel:
4 barrels crude oil unused
Savings from the use of wind­generated electricity are equivalent to:
not driving 10,608 miles
OR
planting 662 trees
Printing of this report was executed by an environmentally sustainable
printer that is FSC­certified and has a zero landfill, 100 percent recy­
cling policy for all hazardous and non­hazardous waste by­products.
The company generates all of its own electricity and thermal power
and is the only Air Quality Management District (AQMD)­certified
“totally enclosed” commercial printing facility in the U.S. This process
results in virtually zero volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions
being released into the atmosphere.
This report is also available on Walgreens.com/community. A limited number of
reports were printed in order to minimize our impact on the environment. Please
share this report with a friend before recycling. Thank you!