Insurance firm wins best workplace top award

AA Insurance has been named New Zealand's best workplace. Photo / Supplied

After a year spent dealing with the Christchurch earthquake fallout, AA Insurance has been named New Zealand's best workplace.

The firm beat 237 entries for the top spot in the annual JRA awards announced tonight.

As well as overall winner, AA Insurance - which employs 479 workers across the country - also won the large workplace category.

It was involved heavily in the response to the earthquake aftermath, organising mobile homes as offices in Christchurch so people could make claims in person instead of by telephone.

Although a finalist for four years running, this is the first time AA Insurance has carried off an award.

The firm was ranked above 34 other finalists after employees answered questions across categories such as culture and values, learning and development, communication and co-operation.

Three other insurance companies - Southern Cross Medical Care Society, Vero Insurance New Zealand and New Zealand-owned FMG - joined AA in the finals.

Other winners at the black tie awards ceremony at the Langham Hotel in Auckland included the Electricity and Gas Complaints Commissioner in the small workplace category, Brother International (NZ) in the small to medium, and Mars New Zealand in the medium-large category.

The largest survey of workplace climate and employee opinion in the country, it uses confidential feedback from employees to rate the organisations they work for.

Now in its 12th year, the survey attracted record feedback, with more than 31,700 employees responding.