September 15, 2004
YKHC Corporate Headquarters, Bethel Alaska.
YKHC Public Relations Staff Report
In a report released earlier this month by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation (YKHC) is ranked No. 9 of Alaska's 100 largest employers in the state.
Including YKHC, 17 Native organizations made the Top 100 list this year.
"It is interesting to note that the top 24 employers on that list were from Anchorage, with the exception of two from Fairbanks and one from Juneau," said Gene Peltola, YKHC's President and CEO. "But YKHC in Bethel was the only rural- based organization of that group."
However, the report is for the year 2003, which shows YKHC as having only 1,217 employees. According to Peltola, YKHC issued 1,935 checks in the most current payperiod and would now be the fourth largest employer in the state, provided that Alaska Airlines did not grow beyond YKHC's expansion.
"Our long-term growth is indicative of the dedication and commitment of our employees in the organization to address the health care needs of our people," Peltola added.
Presently, in the 2003 report, the top five employers include Alaska Airlines with 1,726 employees, Fred Meyer with 2,341, Wal-Mart at 2,443, Safeway/Carrs at 3,135, and Providence Hospital at the very top with 3,556.
Providence Health System Alaska has been the largest employer in the state since 2000, and has 120 more employees than 2002's statistics.
Of the largest non-profits in the state, YKHC made No. 3, just behind Providence Health and Banner Health (No. 7 on the top 100 list, with 1,243 employees).
Not surprisingly, the largest group of employers is the non-profit health and social services sector, employing nearly 25 percent of the state's workforce. The report states the health care industry is lively in Alaska due to its labor-intensive, around- the-clock and year-round service.
Of the other Native organizations, the report lists NANA Management Services as No. 8 on the list, with 1,227 employees. NANA is an Alaska Native Settlement Claims Act (ANSCA) regional corporation based in Kotzebue.
NANA also made the Fortune 500, mostly due in part to a joint venture with Marriot Hotels. The Fortune 500 lists the top 500 of the nation's largest companies.
Only NANA and YKHC are Native-run businesses in the top 10 of the list.
Southcentral Foundation, based in Anchorage, came in at No. 15, with 947 employees. The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium came in at No. 16 with 919 staffers. The Southeast Alaska Regional Health Corp. came in at No. 23 with 705 personnel.
In Alaska's interior, the Tanana Chiefs Conference made No. 27 with 671 employees. Doyon, another ANSCA company and run by former YKHC Executive Vice President Orie Williams, came in at No. 29 with 661 staff.
Other regional health corporations also made the list: Maniilaq came in No. 35 with 569, Norton Sound Health Corporation at No. 51 with 428, and Bristol Bay Area Health Corporation, No. 68, with 359. AVCP, another Bethel-based non-profit, came in No. 84 with 317 employees.