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November 15, 2008

Champlain firm honored by NYSARC

By DAN HEATH

CHAMPLAIN — One local company takes treating employees equally to a higher level.

IFC (Ice Fulfillment Center) in Champlain received recognition as NYSARC 2008 Northeast Region Employer of the Year in mid-October. IFC was nominated by the North Country Chapter of NYSARC based on its treatment of seven employees with intellectual and other disabilities, about 18 percent of its workforce at the time.

Anne Pelletier of IFC's Human Resources Department went to Albany to receive the award, which covers an area north of Albany to the Canadian border. She sat at the head table and gave a speech to about 500 people on how IFC treats all employees equally.

"When you come here to work, we don't care who you are. Everybody's equal," Pelletier said. "We all contribute to be a part of the whole."

That means anyone can be asked to do any job, whether that be pick-n-pack, stuffing envelopes with advertising materials or even cleaning the bathroom.

"No one is better than anyone else," said IFC General Manager David Phelps.

"This award is all about our people working together."

IFC was nominated for the award by the Clinton County ARC. Shannon Bresette, a job coach supervisor with that agency's Workforce Network, said that nomination was based on IFC's ability to go above and beyond the call of duty during their collaboration.

"David Phelps (IFC general manager) and the whole organization truly believe in helping people develop life skills," she said.

Phelps said the Champlain operation is a distribution center and repair facility for the family-owned online jewelry businesses, Ice.com and Diamonds.com, based in Montreal. The Gniwisch family has designed and manufactured jewelry for about 40 years, he said.

"We started here with 10 employees in July 2004," Phelps said. "We now have an average of 45 employees. During the holidays we can have 125-150 people."

The Champlain facility also fulfills company orders sold through Overstock.com, Amazon.com and other Internet sales sites.

The holiday season is underway. IFC typically does 60 percent of its business from early November through Christmas, Phelps said.

That leads to tremendous overtime opportunities. No one is forced, but 16-hour days are available for those who want to earn some extra money.

IFC has also received a Certificate of Appreciation from Champlain Valley Educational Services for its participation in the CVES Career Pathways program. The company had a number of Northeastern Clinton Central School students with varying degrees of disability work during and after school, until the program was cut from the school's budget.

"We have kids from that program that still work here. They now work after school," Phelps said. "This work experience can help them with their next job."

Bresette said Phelps actively fought the budget cut, and IFC was the only company that took part in the program that paid the students for the work they did.

Another example of his dedication to the cause was on display when he took the time to transport A Workforce Network participant to and from work because she was not comfortable driving in winter. Phelps later helped her ability to car pool, so she was able to get to and from work each day.

Phelps and Pelletier said the company's employees are usually successful because they are presented a clear outline of expectations and given the tools they need to do the job successfully.

Pelletier said employees are introduced to the IFC Wall of Words — which includes terms such as hard working, reliable, dedicated, honest, respect and more — and is meant to help people feel good about what they do.

Other signs around the building include "Gossip is hazardous — Participate at your own risk" and "You may not like the person next to you, but you're going to respect them and we're going to work together."

Those who want to engage in gossip or don't want to work together don't last long, Phelps said.

"We get rid of people who cause problems," he said.

Phelps said IFC hires most of its workers through ETS in Plattsburgh, a collaboration that has worked very well. Most come from the Northern Tier.

"We take a lot of pride in hiring local people," Phelps said.

E-mail Dan Heath at: dheath@pressrepublican.com

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