A focus on training and skills development: 'Nova Scotia's Top Employers' for 2019 are announced
HALIFAX, Jan. 26, 2019 /CNW/ - It's easier to train existing employees to develop the skills needed for tomorrow's economy than it is to locate and hire new employees who have those skills. That's the message from this year's winners of the Nova Scotia's Top Employers competition, announced this morning by Mediacorp Canada Inc., which manages the annual Canada's Top 100 Employers project.
"The federal government recently announced a significant, multi-year investment in training residents of Nova Scotia to acquire the skills that will be necessary to succeed in tomorrow's economy," says Anthony Meehan, Publisher at Mediacorp. "Governments and employers are recognizing that it's better to give people the skills they need to succeed – the alternative is sluggish economic growth, combined with a generation of workers and companies that don't have the skills needed for the economy of tomorrow."
"Nova Scotia has a challenge that's unique among other provinces in Canada," says Richard Yerema, Managing Editor of the Canada's Top 100 Employers project. "There aren't as many younger workers entering the workforce, so employers and governments need to pay special attention to upgrading the skills of the existing workforce. Nova Scotia has an international reputation for top quality educational institutions and its focus on education – these talents need to be put to use training Nova Scotia residents to succeed to the fields that will be in demand in the future."
Now in its 13th year, Nova Scotia's Top Employers is a special designation that recognizes employers in the province that lead their industries in offering exceptional places to work. Employers were evaluated by the editors at Canada's Top 100 Employers using the same criteria as the national competition: (1) Physical Workplace; (2) Work Atmosphere & Social; (3) Health, Financial & Family Benefits; (4) Vacation & Time Off; (5) Employee Communications; (6) Performance Management; (7) Training & Skills Development; and (8) Community Involvement. Employers are compared to other organizations in their field to determine which offer the most progressive and forward-thinking programs. The annual competition is open to any employer with its head office in Nova Scotia; employers of any size may apply, whether private or public sector.
Here are some of the initiatives that the editors noted this year:
- EfficiencyOne invests in ongoing employee education with tuition subsidies for courses taken at outside institutions (up to $2,500 annually) and subsidies for professional accreditation;
- Emera Inc. created new scholarship to honour the organization's outgoing CEO, Chris Huskilson, that provides university students up to $10,000 per year (for four years), a 12-week paid internship and mentoring from a senior leader;
- Jazz Aviation encourages employees to keep their skills sharp with formal mentoring, in-house training, and tuition subsidies for courses related to their position (to $3,000 annually) -- and trains tomorrow's employees via summer student jobs, paid internships, co-op placements and apprenticeships;
- Workers' Compensation Board of Nova Scotia supports new mothers with maternity leave top-up (to 93% of salary for 17 weeks) and parental leave top-up for new fathers and adoptive parents (to 93% of salary for 10 weeks), as well as academic scholarships (to $500 each) for employees' children to pursue post-secondary studies;
- ResMed Halifax lets employees share in the company's success with a share purchase plan and matches employees' RSP contributions -- staff also receive generous referral bonuses when they recruit new candidates (to $5,000); and
- Emera Inc. encourages employees to volunteer with local charities through the 'Good Neighbour' program, matching employee donations through the 'Dollars for Doers' initiative ($400 for fundraising, or $600 for every 30 volunteer hours).
Founded in 1992, Mediacorp Canada Inc. is the nation's largest publisher of employment periodicals. Since 1999, the Toronto-based publisher has managed the Canada's Top 100 Employers project, which includes 18 regional and special-interest editorial competitions that reach over 15 million Canadians annually through a variety of magazine and newspaper partners, including The Globe and Mail. Mediacorp also operates Eluta.ca, one of Canada's largest job search engines, which reaches nearly eight million unique visitors annually and features editorial reviews from the Canada's Top 100 Employers project. Together with Willis Towers Watson, Mediacorp hosts Canada's largest annual conference for senior-level HR professionals, the Top Employer Summit, held in Vancouver and Toronto.
The full list of Nova Scotia's Top Employers for 2019 was posted this morning on the competition homepage. This year's winners were announced today in a special feature in The Chronicle-Herald. Detailed reasons for selection, explaining why each winner was chosen, were released this morning and are accessible via the competition homepage.
SOURCE Mediacorp Canada Inc.
Kristina Leung, Senior Editor, 416-964-6069 x1464
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