NY TIMES HR LEADER, DAVID NORTON, LEAVES FOR BANKING INDUSTRY

David Norton Joins Bank from Role as Human Resources Chief at The New York

Times Co.

BRIDGEPORT, Conn., Oct. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- People's United Bank(Nasdaq: PBCT) announced today that it has hired David Norton as Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer. Norton will be a member of the bank's Management Committee and report directly to Philip R.Sherringham, President and Chief Executive Officer. Norton joins People's United from his former position as Senior VicePresident, Human Resources, at The New York Times Co. where he was accountablefor all human resources-related responsibilities for 10,000 employees. Prior to his most recent position, Norton was charged with enterprise-wide humanresources responsibilities at Starwood Hotels and Resorts and, earlier, at Frito Lay North America, a division of PepsiCo. He began his career at The Quaker Oats Co. Norton earned a bachelors in Business Administration from Michigan State University and completed the Advanced Management Program at Northwestern University.

"I welcome Dave to the People's United team and look forward to working withhim to continue developing our employee strategy, a critical driver of our business," Sherringham said. "The fact that we were recognized by J. D. Powerand Associates as 'Highest Customer Satisfaction with Regional Banking in the New England Region' is a direct reflection of the quality of our employees -- and, by extension, our employee strategy." "I am very pleased to join People's United," Norton said. "I look forward to bringing my perspective on human resources to the corporation as it executesits growth strategy. " People's United Bank, a diversified financial services company with $21 billion in assets, provides consumer and commercial banking services through a network of subsidiary banks with approximately 300 branches in Connecticut,Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine and New York. Through additional subsidiaries, People's United Financial, the parent of People's United Bank, provides equipment financing, asset management, brokerage and financial advisory services, and insurance services.