Sunrise Growers Selects Kronos to Match Workforce to Seasonal Demands

Sunrise Growers Selects Kronos to Match Workforce to Seasonal Demands

    Business Editors/Technology Editors

    CHELMSFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 22, 2005--

Kronos' integrated workforce management suite allows harvester to manage 900 percent seasonal workforce flux
    Harvest season at Sunrise Growers, Inc., one of the largest grower-shippers of fresh strawberries in the United States, means a rapid ramp-up in labor. In order to accommodate its large seasonal workforce, Sunrise Growers has turned to Kronos(R) Incorporated (Nasdaq: KRON) for human resources, payroll, and time and labor solutions. Sunrise Growers chose Kronos' Workforce Central(R) suite to consolidate a variety of disparate systems, and to reap the benefits of a single, integrated system for all employee-focused applications.
    Kronos' time and labor system gives Sunrise Growers managers access to track labor at multiple levels of detail in a user-friendly environment. In addition, operational plant employees have access to data from Kronos' open database, which is used to create many different individually tailored reports to better track workforce productivity.
    "Implementing the Kronos suite enabled us to evaluate and improve many of our processes," said Tom Weber, HR director at Sunrise Growers. "We are impressed that we are able to bring on board and manage new employees without increasing administrative processes."
    Kronos' payroll solution has already automated Sunrise Grower's payroll check process and payroll tax filing, thereby reducing the production cost of each check. Kronos also helps Sunrise Growers monitor compliance with a variety of employee regulations while also compiling valuable agricultural tracking data in one easy-to-access system.
    Sunrise Growers' HR offices now have access to detailed information about the employees in their location, which has resulted in better services to employees on pay and benefit questions and improving employee relations company-wide.
    "We believe the soft benefit of better employee relations has translated into hard Dollar savings on workers' compensation costs," continued Weber. "One of our company's core strategic initiatives is better employee relations. We want to be an employer that people actively seek out for regular and seasonal employment opportunities -- and Kronos is helping us achieve that goal."
    Using Sunrise Growers' own handheld barcode readers, labor transfers are collected and fed into the timekeeping system. In addition, Sunrise Growers production facilities have installed Kronos 4500 Touch ID(TM) biometric terminals to eliminate "buddy punching" -- or employees inappropriately entering time and labor data for each other.
    "Sunrise Growers' business is dependent on effectively managing its harvest to ensure high-quality, fresh produce. It is crucial to have the right employee at the right place and time performing all necessary jobs," said Dave Roth, director of industry marketing at Kronos. "Kronos' suite of workforce management solutions gives Sunrise Growers the peace of mind that when the strawberries are ripe, the workforce is ready for the harvest."

    About Sunrise Growers

    Established in 1972, Sunrise Growers, Inc. is one of the largest producers and marketers of high-quality, fresh strawberries and a growing line of high-quality, fresh vegetables. Sunrise Growers, Inc. is fully vertically integrated from source to market ensuring quality throughout the supply chain. Its sister company, Frozsun Foods, Inc., was established in 1986 and is the leading processor of frozen fruit in the United States as well as a processor of select frozen vegetables. Frozsun Foods, Inc. is fully vertically integrated from source to market ensuring quality throughout the supply chain.

    About Kronos Incorporated

    Kronos Incorporated is the most trusted name in workforce management. Kronos helps organizations staff, develop, deploy, track, and reward their workforce, resulting in reduced costs, increased productivity, better decision-making, improved employee satisfaction, and alignment with organizational objectives. More than 20 million people use a Kronos solution every day. Learn more about Kronos' high-impact enterprise solutions at www.kronos.com.

    (C) 2005 Kronos Incorporated. Kronos, Workforce Central, and the Kronos logo are registered trademarks and Kronos 4500 Touch ID is a trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. All other product and company names mentioned are used for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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CONTACT: Kronos Incorporated Michele Glorie, 978-947-2855 mglorie@kronos.com

KEYWORD: MASSACHUSETTS INDUSTRY KEYWORD: HARDWARE SOFTWARE NETWORKING FOODS/BEVERAGES RETAIL MARKETING AGREEMENTS SOURCE: Kronos Incorporated

Copyright Business Wire 2005