MILWAUKEE, Oct. 21, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, was named for the third year in a row to Newsweek's Greenest Big Companies in America, ranking No. 26 among 500 U.S. public companies and No. 1 in the professional services category.

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"As a mission-driven organization, ManpowerGroup is dedicated to implementing new practices and tools that will enable us to more effectively align our business strategies and operations for both sustainability and profitability," said Jeffrey A. Joerres, ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO. "I am proud of the ripple effect that our best green practices have had on various industries, stakeholders and communities worldwide."

In the Newsweek list, ManpowerGroup's overall green score was 69.3. Newsweek worked with two environmental research organizations to analyze the largest publicly traded companies in the United States and compare their environmental impact and management, and disclosure policies.

ManpowerGroup was also recently named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, the gold standard in recognizing corporate sustainability leaders, for the fourth consecutive year for its continued commitment to sustainability business practices. Earlier this year, ManpowerGroup was ranked No. 1 for social responsibility in the staffing industry in Fortune's list of the World's Most Admired Companies.

Many of ManpowerGroup's reduce, reuse and recycle initiatives are driven at the local level. Key ManpowerGroup properties, located around the world, are optimized to save on energy costs and promote campaigns for collectively recycling roughly 1 million pounds of paper and plastic products annually.

ManpowerGroup's world headquarters building in Milwaukee is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold-certified for its green construction techniques and as all of its building materials, right down to the office chairs for containing low volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to improve indoor air quality. Recycling more than 22,000 lbs. (9,979 kg) of glass, aluminum and plastic bottles is the practice. Also, by using low-flow water fixtures in bathrooms, this office reduced water consumption by 41 percent. With recent upgrades to its heating and ventilation systems, the same building has saved $25,000 in energy costs since January.

Regional Green Champions assess the use of computers, lighting, paper, heating, cooling and more for Green@Work, an initiative that reduces the global carbon footprint of Right Management, ManpowerGroup's talent and career management expert. The team tracks and improves 21 different environmental practices in nearly 200 offices worldwide — generating more than 4,000 green actions each day.

ManpowerGroup UK has reduced CO2 emissions for company cars, which already operate below the national average for emissions.

To reduce the environmental impact of travel, ManpowerGroup France has more than doubled the use of videoconferencing and webinars in recent years.

ManpowerGroup Norway offers electric cars for external meetings, and each vehicle is driven 3,106 miles annually, reducing air pollution in greater Oslo. This office also partners with an organization to donate used electronic equipment to students in developing nations and consolidated its servers into a single unit that supports a virtual network, cutting energy costs in half.

These are just a few highlights of ManpowerGroup's effort to build more environmentally sustainable communities.

About ManpowerGroup

ManpowerGroup™ (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, creates and delivers high-impact solutions that enable our clients to achieve their business goals and enhance their competitiveness. With over 60 years of experience, our $22 billion company creates unique time to value through a comprehensive suite of innovative solutions that help clients win in the Human Age. These solutions cover an entire range of talent-driven needs from recruitment and assessment, training and development, and career management, to outsourcing and workforce consulting. ManpowerGroup maintains the world's largest and industry-leading network of nearly 3,900 offices in over 80 countries and territories, generating a dynamic mix of an unmatched global footprint with valuable insight and local expertise to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year, across all industry sectors, small and medium-sized enterprises, local, multinational and global companies. By connecting our deep understanding of human potential to the ambitions of clients, ManpowerGroup helps the organizations and individuals we serve achieve more than they imagined — because their success leads to our success. And by creating these powerful connections, we create power that drives organizations forward, accelerates personal success and builds more sustainable communities. We help power the world of work. The ManpowerGroup suite of solutions is offered through ManpowerGroup™ Solutions, Manpower®, Experis™ and Right Management®. Learn more about how the ManpowerGroup can help you win in the Human Age at www.manpowergroup.com.

ManpowerGroup is the most trusted brand in the industry, being the only company in our industry to be named to the Ethisphere Institute's 2011 World's Most Ethical Companies list for our proven commitment to ethical business practices, including an outstanding commitment to ethical leadership, compliance practices and corporate social responsibility. In addition, ManpowerGroup has also been recognized as the industry leader by Fortune magazine, who named the company in first place on its 2011 list of the Most Admired Companies in the temporary help sector.

In January 2011, at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, ManpowerGroup announced the world has entered the Human Age, where talent has replaced capital as the key competitive differentiator. Learn more about this new age at www.manpowergroup.com/humanage

Gain access to ManpowerGroup's extensive thought leadership papers, annual Talent Shortage surveys and the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, one of the most trusted indices of employment activity in the world, via the ManpowerGroup World of Work Insight iPad application. This thought leadership app explores the challenges faced by employers navigating the changing world of work and provides in-depth commentary, analysis, insight and advice on strategies for success.  

Follow ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO Jeff Joerres on Twitter: twitter.com/manpowergroupjj. Joerres is one of only six Fortune 500 CEOs who leverages a Twitter account to get his message out.

SOURCE ManpowerGroup