TEXAS Seniors 60+: HEB phone orders delivery now available

[Aquaria]

13. Do you have anything positive to say

About anyone? Or only bilious sniping?

HEB is a good company. Perfect, no, but a good community partner. They give 5% of their pre-tax profits to charity. They have ongoing book drives to encourage children to read. Whenever there's a disaster, they help raise money for assistance, and round up employees all over the state to help deliver donated goods. They don't force any employee to go. They accept volunteers for those programs, and HEB employees step up.

The Butts are also not horrible people. The company was started by a widow with five children in a podunk town in the Hill Country (Kerrville), all the way back in 1905. Her son Howard E, whom the company is now named after, later took charge and started making it into the thriving chain it is.

The current head of the company, Mrs. Butt's grandson, Charles, started out bagging groceries for the company, like his father before him. Charles is a driving force behind the charitable giving, the book drive, and--oh yeah--making his store a leader in offering healthy products under his store brand. Which are as good or better in most cases than the national brands.

HEB also gives its employees "partner perks," which is a 10% discount on store brand items, including meat--before any sales prices. Also through the perks program, employees get freebie items to try out, because guess what? They're the best advertising he could ask for in convincing customers to try new products. My husband and I routinely get at least $400-500 a year in savings on our food purchases, thanks to the perks program. When the hubby was first with the company, way back when dirt was young, that was the equivalent of an extra week's pay, every single year. Did I mention we also get a 20% discount during Thanksgiving week, and a free turkey every year, too? Well, now you know.

In addition, HEB offers a company-owned clinic for GP care, with very low or even no co-pays (depending on your income) to all of its employees and their families. Through the clinic, I also get free or low co-pay access to a nutritionist to help me control my diet and to a physical therapist if I get injured. The company has an additional managed care program for those with major chronic conditions like diabetes, asthma, hypertension or heart disease. This program lets me get my diabetic medications, testing equipment, lancets and even test strips for $0 co-pay, or for a substantial reduction in cost for non-generic medications. All I have to do to get that is to do what I should (and would) anyway: Make the effort to see my doctor on a regular basis and to do my part to get as healthy as I can be by staying on top of my blood sugar. Someone from the CCP gives me a call to check in with how my A1C is doing. If it's below 7, then I only have to check in once a year; otherwise, it's quarterly.

Every year, they give employees discounts on their health insurance if they get a physical every year, and if they quit smoking.

Someone up thread mentioned the stock option program that they have now, and the $2/hour bonus pay during the COVID-19 situation.

Not many companies do all of that for their employees, customers or community. HEB does. Because Charles isn't an idiot about how to create fiercely loyal customers and employees. He is why HEB routinely comes in at or near the top of lists for the best grocery store chain in the country, year after year. He's a good person, for a CEO. Maybe you think it makes you look cute or clever for comparing him or his family to Neanderthals, but, in reality, it only makes you look ignorant. About the Butts, and about Neanderthals.