News Release:

December 31, 2008

ATB Financial named one of Canada’s 50 Best Employers by Report on Business

Edmonton, Alberta: Putting people first – from leadership training to flexible work schedules to competitive rewards – has propelled ATB Financial on to Report on Business’s 50 Best Employers in Canada list for the first time.

Human resources consultant Hewitt Associates, in conjunction with Report on Business magazine, collected information for this year’s awards from more than 115,000 employees and more than 1,200 executives. Some 145 Canadian organizations participated in the study.

The Hewitt study, now in its 10th year, measures employees’ "engagement", or how likely an employee is to speak positively about the organization, stay with the organization and be motivated to care for its customers and contribute to its business success.

"Most organizations say their employees are their most important asset, but at ATB Financial we are absolutely determined to bring real meaning to that," said Dave Mowat, ATB’s President and CEO.

"It says right in our business plan that our first strategic priority is to make ATB the place to work. This honour from Hewitt and Report on Business magazine affirms that we’re putting people first and that we have the best of Alberta making dreams come true for Albertans."

ATB ranked 40th on the Hewitt/ROB list, enjoying employee engagement scores that were nearly 20 percentage points higher than the average reported by companies that didn’t make the Top 50.

"We make a conscious effort at ATB to develop talent for the future, to adapt to the changing needs of our associates and to offer competitive rewards," said Sandy Chipchar, ATB’s Chief People and Marketing Officer.

"This award reinforces that we’re on the right track, and motivates us to keep striving to find ways to ensure our associates’ needs are met and their expectations are exceeded."

ATB Financial was recently named one of Alberta’s Top 40 Employers by Mediacorp Canada Inc., and was designated by Benefits Canada magazine as having one of Canada’s 30 Best Pension and Benefits plans for 2007 and 2008.

For further information please contact:

Shawn Ohler
Director of Media Relations
ATB Financial
(780) 408-6529
e:mail: sohler@atb.com

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