The Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division (NAWCTSD) received honors from the Orlando Sentinel as number five on its annual list of Top 100 Companies for Working Families. This is the ninth year in a row the command received Top 100 honors.

NAWCTSD's selection was announced at an awards luncheon hosted Aug. 7 by the newspaper. The individual rankings of the top ten employers along with a list of all of the top 100 honorees will be published in a special supplement to the Orlando Sentinel.

Every year since 2007 NAWCTSD earned a spot on the list. In 2008 NAWCTSD was ranked 48th, and has been ranked higher every year. This year, the Navy's premier modeling and simulation command moved up one place from sixth in 2014, putting it into the top ten for two years in a row.

The recognition honors the efforts of Orlando area employers who encourage their employees to reach and maintain a balance between their work and family life. A panel of human resources executives, assembled by the Sentinel, looks at a variety of benefits packages and programs offered by different companies. According to the Sentinel, company programs must be "imaginative and inventive" and offer "innovative, flexible programs and services that make their workers' lives less hectic."

Judging criteria included health and life insurance, flexible spending accounts, 401k accounts, maternity/paternity leave, flextime opportunities, employee rewards, newsletters and internet resources, tuition reimbursement, and training programs, among others.

Some of the programs offered by NAWCTSD include, flexible work schedules, access to physical fitness facilities, including an on-site gym, fitness stations, volleyball and basketball courts, locker rooms, and shower facilities; on-site ATM machine; mail room; wellness and other health programs like smoking cessation, nutrition classes, a facility for nursing mothers, professional counseling services, and flu shots. NAWCTSD also sponsors a Bring your Daughters and Sons to Work Day, when families are invited to visit the NAWCTSD workplace.

NAWCTSD is the highest-ranked government agency on the Top 100 list.

For more news from Naval Support Activity Orlando, visit www.navy.mil/.