Archive for January 20th, 2010

If its shareholders approve, Kraft will amass a pile of debt to purchase Cadbury, the British candymaker, for billions of dollars. But will it honor Cadbury’s noble history?

AsNPR’s Vicki Barker reported:

Almost from its beginnings in 1824, Cadbury has been more than just a chocolate company. Its founder, John Cadbury, came from a long line of wealthy Quakers. He believed chocolate drinks could woo the working class away from alcohol.

In 1879, the Cadbury family created a model village for their workers called Bournville in rolling countryside, away from industrial smoke and fumes.

Cadbury pioneered pension schemes and joint worker-management committees and provided medical services long before socialized medicine came to Britain.

Even today, the company takes a progressive stance on issues from union membership and fair trade policies, to employee involvement.  Employees who want to report any behavior that diverges from the company’s principles can call the confidential Speaking Up Helpline.

I wonder if that will be cut…

Today my hometown paper highlighted Jill Drury, an unusually creative CVS pharmacist who spices up her “repetitive” days by stocking up on cookbooks so that she can share recipes with her fellow pharmacists and even some patients.

They’ve found enhancing their cooking skills spices up their lives. And it’s not that hard. As Drury says, “After all, we were already great at following directions.”

How do you spice up your workday?