Pittsburgh, PA, January 5, 2007 -- Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (PIA/GATF) proudly announces a new Employee Recognition Calendar for the printing industry. “Employee recognition comes in many forms, and management professionals agree that it is an important component to a thriving company and committed orkforce,” says Jim Kyger, HR Director of Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (PIA/GATF). “It doesn't matter if you have a formal or informal employee recognition program; the important thing is that you acknowledge good work by employees.” Some companies have a mix of informal and formal employee recognition programs, while others struggle with the implementation of formal programs. Industry acknowledgement can help fill that gap. The Employee Recognition Program (ERP) allows printers to formally recognize outstanding employees for quality work and years of service. Companies can create their own employee recognition events and use the Employee Recognition Program as its recognition vehicle or they can follow a calendar that PIA/GATF is releasing in 2007. This calendar lists positions that can be recognized based on established celebrations dedicated to groups of individuals throughout the year (see below for more details). ERP's roots go back to the 1950s at PIA/GATF with the Master Printers of America department. For more information and for ideas on other ways to recognize employees go to www.gain.net and Search: Employee Recognition Program. 2007 PIA/GATF Employee Recognition Calendar Week of January 14–20: Press Operators, Assistants and Helpers Week (in conjunction with Printing Week, http://www.iaphc.org/events/ipw/) Week of March 5–9: Prepress Week (coincides with the anniversary of the introduction of the first PostScript laser printer, the Apple LaserWriter.) Week of May 14–20: Shipping/Receiving/Drivers Week (in conjunction with National Transportation Week, http://www.ntweek.org/) Week of July 23–27: Mailers Week (in conjunction with the anniversary of the creation of the U.S. Postal Service on July 26, 1775, http:// www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/pubs/pub100/pub100.htm) Week of October 1–5: Customer Service Representatives Week (in conjunction with Customer Service Week, http://www.icsa.com/csweek/index.cfm) Bindery Week will be announced in the spring of 2007.