RBS 2005 Annual Report Download - page 38

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Citizens
Citizens continued
Citizens is among the top 10 rankings in deposits among US commercial banking organisations.
It ranks seventh in branches and ninth in ATMs.
Citizens was one of just two companies in 2005 to receive the US Chamber of Commerce
Corporate Stewardship Award.
Make it happen
 Citizens’ support for the community is
extensive. Examples include a comprehensive,
multi-million dollar investment plan to increase home
ownership, strengthen commercial retail districts,
and create an education district in Albany, New York;
a new innovative product for low/moderate-income
homebuyers introduced by CCO Mortgage Corp in
traditionally under-served areas; a strong partnership
with the Chicago Urban League on housing and
financial literacy; US$700,000 of help with heating costs
for more than 345 homeless shelters in eight states
through the “Shelter Heating Assistance Campaign”;
and assistance through our Champions in ActionSM
programme for close to 70 small, non-profit agencies
dedicated to a range of housing, health and youth
issues in New England, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
 Citizens’ support for its own people includes
the Home Buyer Assistance Programme, which
since 2002 has helped more than 2,000 colleagues
purchase primary residences – often their first
homes – with forgivable loans totalling more than
US$10 million. The military leave policy, which bridges
pay and benefits to cover the duration of military
leave, has benefited more than 190 colleagues, and
over 70 employees with serving family members
have been given time off with pay, air fares and
help with travel expenses to visit their loved ones.
 Since June 2005 Citizens has promoted
local volunteering through the “Join Us” campaign
and its associated website, which also provides
information on the Champions in Action programme
and enables visitors to let Citizens know about local
non-profit organisations that they feel deserve the
bank’s attention. Citizens created a special Tsunami
Sabbatical to send a colleague to Indonesia for
three months to help with relief and rebuilding
efforts through Plan International. Citizens also
matched colleague donations for Hurricane Katrina
relief efforts, added its own corporate contribution,
and collected customer donations to The Red
Cross and The Salvation Army through its network
of more than 1,600 branches.
 Charter One secured the naming rights to the
previously designated Lakefront Pavilion, a summer
concert performance centre on Northerly Island,
between Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline.
Awards
 Citizens was one of just two companies in
the United States to be awarded the US Chamber
of Commerce Corporate Stewardship Award. This
recognition was for the company’s total performance
and contribution to economic, community and
social progress. It noted Citizens’ Champions in
Action, the Citizens Job Bank, and the company’s
Home Buyer Assistance Programme.
 Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania received the
2005 Good Government Award from the League of
Women Voters for its Citizens Job Bank initiative to
grow new jobs during 2004 and 2005.
 Citizens Financial Group received the 2005
Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom
Award, the US government’s highest honour for
support of the Guard and Reserve for policies
and programmes that support colleagues on active
duty well beyond US legal requirement.
 Citizens received the Alfred P. Sloan Award
for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility
from the Families and Work Institute, U.S. Chamber
of Commerce’s Center for Workforce Preparation
and the Center for Emerging Futures in recognition
of its many programmes to support employees.