Employee Perk Update: PwC Canada Focuses On De-Stressing Indicatives, RBC Highlights Diversity and Education
Canadian companies-including several financial services leaders-are increasingly offering employee benefits that go beyond the traditional menu of health, dental and retirement fare.
"More and more over last 10 years companies have been looking for innovative ways to approach the whole benefits model to get more value for the organization, essentially seeking bigger bang for their benefits buck, Alan Kearns, founder of national leadership and career coaching firm CareerJoy in Toronto, told eFinancialCareers.
Retention and employee satisfaction are their main goals. Among companies that made the Globe and Mail's list of top Canadian employers for 2012-based on evaluations by employment directory publisher Mediacorp-Pricewaterhouse Coopers Canada had some of the most innovative de-stressing perks.
During intense work cycles, such as tax season, PwC Canada professionals are encouraged to ask for help if they find themselves overwhelmed.
"During less busy periods, they are encouraged to 'take the foot off the pedal and take some time off,' says Hazel Claxton, the firm's Toronto-based human capital leader.
Asking for help isn't viewed as a weakness, Ryan Couvrette, a senior manager in PwC's banking capital markets and insurance group, told the Globe and Mail.
In fact, at PwC, senior members of the firm are careful to monitor the hours people are logging and they are ready to step in if someone seems to be veering into overworking territory, which can sap their effectiveness. "We have made work-life flexibility one of our [main] priorities as part of our longer-term business strategy," Claxton explains. One of the benefits to the firm: employees are clocking fewer overtime hours.
In choosing this year's top 100 employers, Mediacorp looked at things like work and social atmosphere; health, financial and family benefits; vacation and time off; communications, how employers handle employee feedback; community involvement, and training and skills development. Another financial services giant that made the list-Royal Bank of Canada-is known for its diversity initiatives and a number of educational benefits.
For people who are more on the leadership track, RBC might support an MBA program. There are also coaching programs such as RBC's Diversity Dialogues, an internal mentorship initiative in which employees learn from each other, which the bank is expanding to 500 new participants.
According to Alexandra J. Jacobs, global head of employee communications at RBC in Toronto, "There's no shortage of innovative global diversity initiatives at RBC.
RBC is currently offering social networking for RBC's aboriginal community, and employee resource groups, which help their members develop personally and professionally by providing opportunities for peer mentoring, coaching and networking.
As part of one of its latest initiatives, RBC Academy has also been working with inner city teens in the UK, with the goal of selling 17-year-old students on banking careers. More than 100 Capital Markets employees volunteered for the RBC Academy in 2010. Two students from each school who excel in the RBC Academy receive a 2,000 (more than C$3,000) for each year they are at university. While there, they will have the opportunity to do RBC work placements and apply for one of the graduate training programs.
A different sort of RBC perk highlighted on the Globe and Mail's top employer chart, however: Apparently, RBC provides an annual week-long convention for 700 of its top performing employees and their partners aboard a luxury cruise ship.
