BENTON HARBOR, Mich., September 10, 2018 -- As part of its continued commitment to create an attractive workplace, Whirlpool Corporation today announced that it will open an employer sponsored child care facility to help working Whirlpool Corporation parents in our local community. 

This comes as a result of a survey that Whirlpool Corporation conducted to more closely understand the childcare needs of its employees. The survey found that there was a significant need among employees’ families for an on site employee child care facility in the Benton Charter Township-Benton Harbor-St. Joseph area.

“We listen to our employees and we take their needs seriously,” said Carey Martin vice president, Global Human Resources at Whirlpool Corporation. “Providing our employees with the support they require to maintain a balanced life and take care of their families is paramount.”

"This is an exciting development for our employees. World-class companies offer onsite employer-sponsored childcare and we made the decision that we should too.  It’s important to our employees. The provider can match our hours of operation and offer the ability of our employees to see their children during the work day.  We see this not only as an opportunity to support our existing employees, but to attract new talent to Whirlpool,” said Martin.

Whirlpool Corporation understands that its greatest asset is people, and providing them with benefits that allow them to unleash their individual and collective talents helps to inspire a winning culture and creates competitive advantage.

After extensive review, KinderCare was selected as the care provider. They are well known for creating an environment that encourages children to learn and for providing high-quality early childhood education and care programs.

“KinderCare is honored to work with Whirlpool and other great employers that believe culture is the heartbeat of the workplace,” said Wei-Li Chong, President, KinderCare and KinderCare Education at Work. “Child care is a key building block of culture and we’re honored to support Whirlpool families by providing the very best care and education for their children. The future of the workforce starts with every child.”

Whirlpool Corporation has been working with Benton Township to place the facility within its global headquarters campus. “We are proud to have Whirlpool Corporation World Headquarters in our township supporting high quality child care” said Kelli Smith, Benton Charter Township Superintendent.

The company plans to break ground in November and open the child care facility in September 2019.

For more than 107 years, Whirlpool Corporation has been invested in the local Benton Harbor-St. Joseph area through community engagement and offering an excellent workplace for the families it employs throughout the region.

About Whirlpool Corporation 

Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) is the world’s leading major home appliance company, with approximately $21 billion in annual sales, 92,000 employees and 70 manufacturing and technology research centers in 2017. The company markets Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Maytag, Consul, Brastemp, Amana, Bauknecht, Jenn-Air, Indesit and other major brand names in nearly every country throughout the world. Additional information about the company can be found at WhirlpoolCorp.com, or find us on Twitter at @WhirlpoolCorp.

About KinderCare Education^® at Work

KinderCare Education and its family of brands partner with more than 490 organizations around the country to provide customized family-focused benefits for employers, including on-site and near-site early learning centers and back-up care for last-minute child care. To learn more, visit us online at www.kindercare.com/atwork.

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