Judging employers by how they treat their older workers: this year's winners of the 'Top Employers for Canadians Over 40' are announced
TORONTO, Nov. 14, 2018 /CNW/ - What's the best way for younger job-seekers to discover whether an employer is really a good place for them to start a career? Just take a look at how they treat their older workers. That's the message from this year's winners of the Top Employers for Canadians Over 40 competition, announced this morning by the editors at Mediacorp Canada Inc.
"It's kind of like taking a long hard look at your mother-in-law or father-in-law before you decide to get married," says Anthony Meehan, Publisher at Mediacorp, which manages the competition. "Families that take the time to attend to the needs of their oldest members are almost always good at taking care of their newest ones. Your spouse also ends up looking like his or her parents, which is often true in a workplace-setting as well."
"There's a common denominator among employers that have been successful in creating exceptional workplaces," says Richard Yerema, Managing Editor of the Canada's Top 100 Employers project at Mediacorp. "Employers that understand how to retain and attract experienced staff become the places where exceptional employees from other organizations want to work."
Now in its 18th year, the Top Employers for Canadians Over 40 is one of the longest-running competitions within the Canada's Top 100 Employers project. This special designation recognizes employers that lead the nation in creating special programs and benefits of interest to employees aged 40 years and older.
The competition reviews a wide range of practices at employers including: active recruitment programs for employees over 40; a broad range of health, financial and family-friendly benefits including long-term savings, health benefits for retirees and support programs such as succession planning and phased-in work options; and opportunities for retirees to stay socially connected with colleagues after they stop working.
Some examples of the employer initiatives recognized this year include:
- Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC), based in Lacombe, Alberta, actively hires experienced insurance adjusters for their experience (the average age of adjusters is 50 years) – and helps employees prepare for life after work with retirement planning courses, phased-in retirement options and generous contributions to a defined benefit pension plan.
- BASF Canada helps employees prepare for the future with retirement planning assistance, employer contributions to a defined contribution pension plan and health benefits that extend to retirees (with no age limit).
- Mississauga, Ontario-based engineering firm Hatch Ltd. helps employees plan for life after work with a defined contribution pension plan, retirement planning assistance and phased-in work options for those nearing retirement – Hatch also lets everyone share in the company's success with profit-sharing.
- Along with helping employees save for the future, CIBC provides retirement planning assistance with phased-in work options for those nearing retirement – and maintains a Retiree Advisory Committee, which aims to represent retirees' views on issues affecting them and provide input on policy review and development.
- Along with helping employees save for retirement through a defined benefit pension plan, Desjardins Group helps employees prepare for life after work with retirement planning assistance and phased-in retirement work options when nearing retirement – retired employees continue to receive health benefits (shared contributions) with no age limit.
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 over seven 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 conference for senior-level HR professionals, the Top Employer Summit, which takes place November 19, 2018 at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel in Vancouver, BC.
More reporting on this year's winners can be found on the competition homepage, where readers can also find the complete list of the 2019 winners.
SOURCE Mediacorp Canada Inc.
Kristina Leung, Senior Editor, Tel. 416-964-6069 x1464
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