TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 01/05/09 -- Aecon Group Inc. (TSX: ARE) announced today that it has been named one of the 10 Best Employers in Canada for 2009 in an annual study managed by Hewitt Associates, and published in the Globe and Mail's Report on Business Magazine.

This is Aecon's second consecutive year on the 50 Best Employers list, considered the premier recognition for Canada's best employers. The best employers list is a direct result of employee responses to a confidential opinion survey conducted by Hewitt, and responses by company executives to a separate series of questions.

"We are honoured to be recognized once again as one of Canada's 50 Best Employers, and we are thrilled to be named among the top 10 in the country," said Scott Balfour, President and CFO of Aecon Group Inc. "We are passionate in our commitment to attracting, developing and retaining the best employees in the business, and these results confirm we are clearly on the right track. We know that this passionate commitment to being the best employer in the industry is also benefiting our clients and our shareholders."

"Aecon's meteoric rise to the top 10 of the 2009 list of the 50 Best Employers in Canada clearly indicates that they are providing the work environment and HR programs that not only meet their employees' needs, but engage them," said Neil Crawford, leader of Hewitt's Best Employers in Canada survey.

Aecon Group Inc. is Canada's largest publicly traded construction and infrastructure development company. Aecon and its subsidiaries provide services to private and public sector clients throughout Canada and internationally. Aecon is pleased to be recognized as one of the 50 Best Employers in Canada as published by Report on Business Magazine, as well as one of the Top 100 Employers in Canada as published in MacLean's Magazine.

The information in this news release includes certain forward-looking statements. These statements are based upon assumptions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties which are discussed in greater detail in the section entitled "Risk Factors and Uncertainties" in Management's Discussion and Analysis of operating results and Financial Condition for the year ended December 31, 2007 filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Although Aecon believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that the expectations of any forward-looking statements will prove to be correct.