What do Sleep Country Canada, Intuit Canada, and Farm Credit Canada all have in common?
These companies, along with 27 other top employers, seem to know what their workers want, at least when it comes to the types of benefits programs that enhance productivity and retention, according to Hewitt Associates.
Hewitt gauged employee feedback at more than 220 companies to determine Benefits Canada magazine’s list of Canada’s 30 best pension and benefits plans.
Farm Credit Canada seems to believe in families, and since most workers have some type of family responsibility, it’s no surprise the Regina, Saskatchewan-based agribusiness financials services company came in second on the list. It offers up to 95% base salary for workers on maternity leave or parental leave, in addition to a variety of flexible scheduling options upon their return.
Edmonton-based Intuit Canada is also family-friendly. Its employee lounge has a pool table and video games, and is the spot for birthday parties for workers as well as their children. In addition, the employee cafeteria stocks up on booster seats and high chairs. And Intuit’s workers shouldn’t complain that their backs hurt from folding laundry. In addition to on-site dry-cleaning, the company retains on-site massage therapists and acupuncturists for in-office treatments.
The 30 organizations “are clearly listening to their employees and providing them with the programs they need and appreciate. As the Canadian workforce becomes more diverse, designing flexible programs that meet a variety of needs is not easy. These 30 companies have met that challenge,” said Don Bisch, editor of pension and benefits publication Benefits Canada.
Hewitt, with Canadian offices in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, and Regina, says each of these organizations participated in the 2007 Best Employers in Canada study, the 2007 Best Small & Medium Employers in Canada study, or a custom employee engagement study.
The Winners for 2007
- Business Development Bank of Canada
- Farm Credit Canada
- Intuit Canada
- DaimlerChrysler Financial Services Canada
- Wellington West Capital Inc.
- EllisDon Corporation
- Midwest Surveys Inc.
- CONEXUS
- AstraZeneca Canada
- National Bank of Canada
- Envision Financial
- Prospera Credit Union & Insurance Agencies
- Pfizer Global Pharmaceuticals Group – Canada
- L’Union Canadienne
- JTI-Macdonald Corp.
- PCL Constructors
- GlaxoSmithKline
- BC Biomedical Laboratories Ltd.
- Nexen Inc.
- Ceridian Canada Ltd.
- Procter & Gamble
- Golder Associates Ltd.
- Deloitte & Touche LLP
- The Co-operators
- Co-operators Life Insurance Company
- ATB Financial
- Sleep Country Canada
- Hoffmann-La Roche Limited
- CNC Global Ltd.
- Flight Centre North America