Bayer Comes Out on Top Once Again!

Bayer is Selected One of Canada's Top 100 Employers for the Seventh Consecutive Year

TORONTO, Oct. 21, 2013 /CNW/ - For the seventh consecutive year, the editors of "Canada's Top 100 Employers" have chosen Bayer as one of the best places to work in Canada!

"We are very pleased to once more be honoured with this award. At Bayer, we work hard to establish a welcoming work environment, and are thrilled that our efforts have been recognized," said Christian Lauterbach, President & CEO, Bayer Inc. "Our programs and initiatives would not be possible without the strong engagement and dedication of our employees."

"This year is particularly rewarding, as our two entities in Canada, Bayer Inc. and Bayer CropScience Inc. have won this award together," said Kamel Beliazi, President & CEO, Bayer CropScience Inc. "Bayer employees across the country share a common sense of pride, and that is reflected with this award. Congratulations to all!"

This year, Bayer was selected based on several innovative programs and initiatives, a few of which are highlighted below:

Bayer's Commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility

Bayer is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2013. In light of this milestone, the Bayer Cares Foundation is supporting 150 volunteer projects by current and retired Bayer employees. The Bayer Cares Foundation helps improve lives in local communities by supporting innovative and non-profit social projects. Two Canadian initiatives, one in Alberta and the other in Ontario, were chosen and each received up to €5,000 in funding. To complement our robust employee-driven corporate social responsibility program and to further support Canadian organizations and its employees' community efforts, Bayer Canada selected and sponsored an additional six employee projects with $2500 of local funding.

In further celebration of the company's anniversary, employees worldwide were encouraged to record their interpretations of Bayer's special anniversary song. When approximately two hundred responses were received from fifty different countries, including 10 from Canada, Bayer decided to release the song publically on iTunes and donate all proceeds to the United Nations not-for-profit initiative "Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves."

Focus on Youth

In August 2013, the world's first global 4-H Youth Ag-Summit was organized by 4-H Canada and Bayer CropScience Inc. in Calgary, Alberta, hosting youth from 20 different countries around the world. For the first time ever, 118 youth, aged between 18 and 25, met to tackle one of the world's biggest challenges: feeding a hungry planet. Throughout the week, delegates attended and participated in workshops, debates and presentations. By the end of the summit, they had developed action plans that they would each be responsible for realizing at home and globally.

Talent Management and Education

Bayer has a robust talent management program, providing employees the opportunity, flexibility and ownership to help shape and drive their career development at Bayer. Bayer also has an Education Assistance Program, which provides financial support to employees who wish to complete educational programs that will assist them in their current role or prepare them for a future career opportunity within the organization.

Bayer also offers LifeSpeak, a series of in-person and online seminars to help employees achieve work-life harmony with topics ranging from RRSP planning, to raising teenagers, to managing stress.

Bayer's 150th Anniversary

During its anniversary year, Bayer in Canada honoured Canadians who have made positive contributions to society through science and innovation. These individuals ranged from educators and research scientists, to leaders in business and philanthropy. The honourees were chosen to represent the themes anchoring Bayer's Science for a Better Life exhibit, a world travelling exhibit which showcases a century-and-a-half of Bayer innovations. In addition to its employees, Bayer invited students from local schools to Toronto's MaRS Centre, the only stop in Canada, to explore the exhibit and learn through the twenty-two interactive displays.

About Bayer in Canada

Bayer Inc. is a Canadian subsidiary of Bayer AG and the corporate headquarters for the Canadian operations.  Celebrating its 150^th anniversary, Bayer AG is an international research-based group with core businesses in healthcare, crop science and innovative materials committed to creating a better life for all through science.

In Canada, Bayer operates its healthcare business - Pharmaceuticals, Consumer Care, Diabetes Care, Animal Health and Radiology & Interventional - from its headquarters in Toronto, ON, and Bayer CropScience Inc. operates out of its head office in Calgary, AB. Together with its material science business, Bayer improves the quality of life for Canadians through products that fight disease, protect crops and animals, and provide high-performance materials for numerous daily life uses.

With more than 1,300 employees across the country, in 2012, Bayer had sales of $1.6 billion and invested $55.9 million in research and development in Canada. Globally, Bayer AG had sales of €39.8 billion and invested €3 billion in research and development.

For more information about Bayer, please visit www.bayer.ca.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group or subgroup management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer's public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.

SOURCE: Bayer Inc.

For further information:

Contact:
Laura Burns, 416-240-5484
[email protected]