MADRID: The Great Place to Work Institute today named Abbott (NYSE: ABT) one of the Best Workplaces in Europe at its European Conference in Madrid. The company was specifically honored for workplace leadership in Denmark, Ireland and Norway.

"Being named one of the Best Workplaces in Europe is a tremendous honor for Abbott, especially given the award is based primarily on employee feedback. It's clear that Abbott employees are passionate about the work they do to improve the health of people in Europe and around the world," said Eckhard Hofsaess, senior HR director, Europe, Abbott. "We focus on connecting people with their potential through training, mentoring and leadership development programs, and by providing employees with the flexibility and support they need to build extraordinary careers."

So far in 2010 Abbott has been honored as a top employer in 16 countries across Europe: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Creating a leading workplace for more than 20,000 Abbott employees in Europe is a priority for advancing Abbott's ability to bring forward innovative new devices, diagnostics, nutritional products and pharmaceuticals. Beyond Europe, Abbott also is recognized as a top employer in countries around the world, including Brazil, Canada, South Korea and the U.S.

"These honors in Europe highlight Abbott's efforts to provide a consistent global approach to people management across all its businesses, while also providing flexibility for targeted initiatives that meet the local needs of employees and Abbott's growing businesses in Europe and around the world," said Hofsaess.

About the Best Workplaces in Europe:
The Great Place to Work Institute Europe selects the Best Workplaces in Europe from more than 1,300 companies that participate in local-country Best Workplaces surveys across Europe. The local country surveys have the same basic methodology that combine the results from the employee survey Trust Index and the management survey Culture Audit. The opinion of employees is the most important element of the evaluation.

Abbott Widely Recognized as a Premier Global Employer:
Abbott's global approach is to be a premier employer in every country where we operate, helping us to realize the full potential of our employees to discover new ways to improve the health of people around the world. Including Best Workplace honors across Europe, Abbott has been recognized as an outstanding employer in more than 20 countries around the world. In addition, FORTUNE magazine recently named Abbott the No. 1 Most Admired Company in its industry sector in 2010, in part for the company's strong performance in people management.

About Abbott:
Abbott is a global, broad-based health care company devoted to the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals, devices and diagnostics. The company employs approximately 83,000 people and markets its products in more than 130 countries.

Abbott's news releases and other information are available on the company's Web site at www.abbott.com.