2008 Choice Employers, 101-300 Employees, No. 5: Guaranty Bank

With 10 local banking centers, Guaranty Bank makes its presence known.

Led by President and CEO Shaun Burke, Guaranty Bank has banking centers in Greene and Christian Counties, and loan production offices in Webster, Howell and Douglas counties.

But it's the bank's benefits that draw the attention of 131 full-time and 38 part-time employees.

Guaranty Bank pays 50 percent of health insurance premiums for employees and their dependents.

After 30 days, employees can participate in the 401(k) plan, and they become fully vested in the plan after six years. The bank matches half of employees' 401(k) contributions, up to 3 percent of the contributors' salaries a year.

Employees also have 12 days of vacation available from the day they're hired, with no waiting period for full-time staff and a 90-day waiting period for part-time employees. Vacation days increase up to 19 days based on time of service.

As the bank honors the Federal Reserve Bank's holiday schedule, there also are 10 paid holidays. Employees are granted five sick days annually, and those can accumulate year-to-year for a maximum of six weeks.

It was Guaranty Bank's employee stock ownership plan that attracted Melissa Carr, vice president and human resources director, to the financial institution.

"Being part of a company that is employee-owned as well as being publicly traded was something that I thought would be very beneficial for my career and a good opportunity to see how that worked in relationship to human resources," she says, noting that she also was intrigued by how the bank, which dates back to 1913, approaches its ongoing growth progressively.

Angel Shortt, corporate services account manager, has been with Guaranty Bank less than a year.

Before joining the bank, she did research and discovered that the benefits were very good and Guaranty has many long-term employees, indicating a good working atmosphere.

Since joining the bank, however, she's found something else she likes, too.

"The people are great to work with," she says, noting that she's especially impressed with the bank's leadership in the community and support of employees who want to get involved.

"They are very strong with nonprofit agencies ... we can actually donate our time (and) they donate and help sponsor events as well," she adds.

The bank also makes sure to recognize its employees' accomplishments. Its "Guaranty's Greatest" honor is a quarterly award for employees nominated by their peers and selected by the company for their efforts in the workplace. Every year, one of the four honorees wins a free trip.

Guaranty Bank also supports employee wellness, with screenings in the spring and flu shots in the fall. The company also pays half of fitness center memberships, up to $150 a year.