Category: Uncategorized

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Creating a Pay Equity Plan

Strategic HR Consulting | Total Rewards Practice

The Pay Equity Act is new legislation that requires most organizations with federally regulated employees to create and maintain a pay equity plan. The goal of this act is to address and correct the gender pay gap in Canadian businesses. Starting November 1, 2021, affected employers are required to post a dated announcement stating the organization’s obligation to comply with the act and to create a committee to govern the work. Depending on your organization’s current policies and structure, the amount of work needed to comply with the legislation may vary. By September 1, 2024, all affected organizations will need to post a pay equity plan.

“Pay equity is equal pay for work of equal value.” – Canadian Human Rights Commission

It’s important to understand that pay equity is more than equal pay for the same job. The Canadian Human Rights Commission defines pay equity as “equal pay for work of equal value.” 

Pay equity plan requirements

To create a pay equity plan, federally regulated companies will need to create a committee of employees to guide the work to complete the following tasks:

  • Create job classes
  • Determine which job classes are predominantly female and which ones are predominantly male;
  • Determine the value of the work done in each job class;
  • Calculate total compensation in dollars per hour for each  job class;
  • Compare compensation to determine whether there are any differences in compensation between job classes of equal value;
  • Prepare the contents of the pay equity plan; and,
  • Post the final versions of the pay equity plan. 

Approaching your plan

Before starting the steps above, it’s important to understand the current roles and responsibilities of your workers and the demographics of who is working in those roles. We suggest you complete a job and workforce analysis to gather this important data.

  • Job analysis – review and update, revise, or create job descriptions based on work that is completed by employees.
  • Workforce analysis – analyze HR and employee self-disclosure data to generate a list of all positions held in your organization by employee demographic data.

The results from the job and workforce analysis will allow you to accurately evaluate each job, place jobs in proper classifications, and assess the internal/external pay equity. Internal equity is most often achieved through a formal job evaluation system where each position is evaluated against compensable factors that results in a value of a given role. External equity is established by assessing the roles to the external market through benchmarking.

There is a lot to consider when creating a fair and accurate pay equity plan. No matter where your organization is at in the process, our People First HR consultants can guide your organization, through facilitated consulting, to help ensure your organization complies with the act. We’ll partner with you to assess your organization’s current program against the requirements and customize our approach to fit your needs.

If your organization is required to comply with the new Pay Equity Act, or if you’re looking to create an equity plan, contact us to see how we can support you and employees through the process.

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Retaining Talent through the Great Resignation

Strategic HR Consulting

The pandemic has created a new normal for many: working from home, juggling work and balancing family priorities. It has also given people a chance to reflect on their life and careers. Many are choosing to quit what they are doing and seek jobs with improved compensation, better work life balance, or to follow a calling or passion.

This phenomenon in employee behaviour is known as the great resignation and is affecting employment rates and companies around the world. The US and UK are seeing record high resignations, and while the trend is not as high here, Canadian companies are also experiencing changes in retention. In a recent People First HR survey, 62% of respondents said their companies are seeing higher resignation rates. In August 2021, Canada’s unemployment rate was the lowest it has been since February 2020, while the job change rate is back up to pre-pandemic levels (Stats Canada).

With more Canadian workers choosing to leave their current jobs for new employment, we are not only seeing a great resignation but a great migration. This leads us to ask, how are businesses and leaders retaining talent through the great resignation?

Through our survey and conversations with knowledge leaders, executives in key Manitoban companies, we have identified three strategies companies are using to retain talent through the great resignation; 

  1. Strong communication
  2. Engaging and supportive organizational culture
  3. Career conversations / stay interviews

Strong communication

Communication with employees has always been key to keeping employees engaged and creating a sense of belonging. A Gallup study found that employees are more likely to want to stay with an organization that has open, timely, and accurate communication.

Companies that focused on communications through the pandemic say they have been able to maintain higher retention rates. If your organization has not been communicating enough, it is time to start. While we move into a new normal, organizations will still experience change and need to keep employees informed.

  • Share news and be honest with your teams. Keep employees in the loop about change, so they are not surprised.
  • Use a variety of channels to  reach your employees: virtual town halls, team meetings, emails, in person, etc.
  • Get feedback and listen to it. The best communication is two-way. Use surveys and small team discussions to learn how your staff are feeling. Report back to employees on your findings and tell them what you are going to do about it.

Engaging and supportive organizational culture

LifeWorks’ Mental Health Index indicates that managers are experiencing greater mental health issues and more stress than non-managers. When managers and people leaders are not engaged in their work, it  can negatively affect their teams, workplace culture, and productivity. This results in resignations of managers and employees.

Some organizations shared that focusing on supporting their people leaders has helped maintain retention rates. Communicating with leaders through change, talking to them about their needs, offering flexibility, and providing tools and training are a few ways to keep your managers engaged and ready to lead their teams.

Additionally, cultivating culture means creating a workplace that people want to be part of. Organizations that have been successful at retaining their employees have engaged in practices like socially distanced get-togethers to create community, inviting staff to run their own workshops for co-workers, like painting or other hobbies and interests. Finally providing flexible working arrangements (hybrid, work from home, flexible work hours) has given employees the ability to make choices that accommodate their circumstances and make it easier to stay.

Career conversations / stay interviews to retain talent

With so much emphasis put on exit interviews, some companies are stemming the flow of resignations with “stay interviews” to discover what it will take to keep employees on their team. Career conversations can be a powerful tool that aligns employee goals with organizational objectives, enhances engagement, and improves retention. For an effective career conversation, managers should follow these five steps:

  1. Prepare for the conversation
  2. Communicate the goal of the meeting
  3. Keep the conversation informal
  4. Talk about their career path and where the individual wants to go
  5. Follow up with feedback

It is best to have career conversations before your employee tells you they want to leave. It is important to be ready to address their needs and interests by offering realistic and meaningful changes to help them stay, while considering their long-term career goals.

Moving through the great resignation  

While we wish the pandemic was long behind us, the reality is that we will continue to see it affect workplaces for a long time. Our industry executives predict that companies will have to do a better job providing technology and tools while people work from home, create better cultures, and be prepared for continued change.  To help retain talent through the great resignation, it is time to focus on your employees and strengthen your internal communication, culture, leadership support, and career conversations. Remember that employees that feel valued and engaged are less likely to leave your organization.

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Conflict, Communication, and Covid-19: the impacts of the pandemic in the workplace

By Deanna Lanoway, Vice President – HR Consulting

As Canada begins to resurface from its 18-month encounter with the Covid-19 pandemic, employers and employees are taking the time to reflect on how this pandemic has impacted their organizations — both positively and negatively. Through the pandemic, our HR Consultants have partnered with employers and employees, and are now shifting to help businesses identify and address the after-effects of the pandemic. As our clients start the long-awaited process of returning to their new ‘normal’, we encourage everyone to pause to reflect and reassess strengths and opportunities for success.   

Although this pandemic brought on unprecedented challenges for businesses, the positive outcomes should be celebrated, and built on as we move forward. We are seeing new opportunities for work-life balance through hybrid or work-from-home models, increased efficiencies in business operations, and adaptability from employers and employees; driven by resourceful approaches to business differentiation, increased customer and stakeholder focus, and the ever-present strong survival instinct. 

People First HR is happy to celebrate these positive results and opportunities with our clients, however, all change comes at a price — even if this is realized later. We’ve been hearing about the negative impacts in the form of increased requests for support related to conflict, complaints, and culture across workplaces during the pandemic. Many of these concerns have a direct link to changing business practice and the work environment, brought on by necessary responses to the pandemic. The old saying that nothing unites like a common enemy has not rung true for many.

Although the virus presents a common enemy for individuals, organizations, and communities, it feels like it has divided us, not brought us closer. Why has this been happening, and what can we do about it?

Assessing your conflict style

Photo of a woman who looks anxious

Understanding ourselves is the best place to begin addressing tension or conflict in the workplace. There are many ways to assess your conflict style, but in the most basic form styles differ in the degree of avoidance or engagement. The widely known ‘fight or flight’ response to stress can easily be applied to how employees experience and respond to conflict within the workplace. 

Employees who respond to conflict with flight may quietly gossip, withhold information, avoid the other individual(s), slow down their work, be absent, or decide to quit. Generally, they use activities intended to get them away from their adversaries. Employees with a tendency to fight might seek to get others onto their ‘side’, raise their voice, place blame, threaten, or escalate to a leader – activities intended to defeat their adversaries.  

Your employees’ responses to conflict can create other side effects that impact the overall culture within your organization. If any of these fight or flight responses to conflict sound familiar to you – it may be time to re-evaluate how conflict is addressed within your workplace.   

Managing conflict productively

Individuals can gain skills in managing conflict productively, no matter their natural tendency. Leaders can help employees identify conflict within their working relationships and give them the tools and support to effectively overcome conflict in the workplace.  

A focus on optimal communications within the group is foundational to conflict management, and it’s one thing that has suffered in almost every workplace during the pandemic, whether employees are working in the office or remotely. 

In the fall of 2020, Communications Researcher Tim Levine (University of Alabama) was quoted in the UAB News saying that “There is some interesting and important research on the effects of social isolation on communication. One impact is that, the less contact we have with other people, the more we become suspicious of other people. This can make others more defensive and lead to a vicious spiral where isolation leads to suspicion, which begets defensiveness, which reinforces the suspicion and leads to further isolation as a self-fulfilling prophesy.”

Photo of three women in a virtual meeting.

Employees working from home, or in new shift patterns to create distance, are experiencing less contact with their colleagues. Essential workers who have been in the workplace all along are likely to have experienced a similar separation in their home and social lives, even if they have not been distanced from coworkers.  

Distance is impacting the way employees communicate with one another. Employees working from home are spending copious amounts of time in virtual meetings, where facial expressions can be gauged, but may not be an accurate representation of how people feel. Essential employees may still speak in person, but through masks, facial expressions and some of the tone of voice is lost. Distance can create space for miscommunication, frustration, conflict, and in turn, a deteriorating workplace culture.  

Lead by example to support your organization’s culture 

To help support your organization’s culture and your employees, take some time to speak to your employees about what effective communication looks like, modeling this behaviour in your communication.

Leaders should encourage open conversation about issues that arise and create a safe space for employees to communicate when they are experiencing conflict at work. Exploring different perspectives in group discussions can help your team normalize healthy, constructive conflict to encourage early and respectful conversations when issues do arise.  

It is important to remember how effective communication can not only help us to avoid conflict in the first place, but also set the stage for a quick and painless resolution of conflicts in the workplace.  

If your organization is feeling the effects of the pandemic on your workplace culture and employee relationships, our HR Consultants are available to help with a customized approach that fits your organization’s needs. Contact us to get started.

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Reap what you have sowed – tips for a successful job search

Career Management

You have worked hard to create materials that demonstrate who you are and what you are looking for in a job. Now it is time to get out there and start your job search. Whatever your reason for making a change, we understand it can be challenging. You will rarely land the first position you apply to or interview for, so having a variety of prospects is important. Here are a few tips to help you have a successful job search and find the opportunity you have been looking for.

1. Be flexible on job titles

While it is a common way to search for a job, searching based on job title alone is not the best approach. By focusing on job titles, you narrow your potential job opportunities and can end up interviewing for a role that you don’t even want.

“Some organizations even use impressive titles to disguise a job that no one wants, or to justify longer hours or lower pay,” says Katharine S. Brooks.

Instead of focusing on a job title, Brooks suggests that you think through four key questions to help kickstart your job search. 

  1. Who do you want to spend your workdays with?
  2. What do you want to spend your time doing?
  3. Where do you see yourself working?
  4. And why are each of these things important to you?

You can use your answers to help you decide what industry or job function to focus your search on or to screen out jobs.

2. Search on a broad range of platforms

Once you have an idea of what is important to you in your new position, it is time to start searching.

A great place to start is on a specialized job board for your industry where you can find multiple opportunities in one place.

Another option is general online job sites like Indeed, LinkedIn, Glassdoor.ca, and ZipRecruiter. Across these sites, you will likely find duplicate postings, but sometimes there will be unique ones as well, so it is worth looking through more than one.

Of course, we also recommend you check out the People First HR job board as we are recruiting for jobs across Canada and frequently add new positions.

Tip: et up alerts for the opportunities you’re interested in so you don’t have to do all the searching.

3. Don’t forget about networking

Did you know that 85% of job openings are filled through networking?

Networking is a great way to learn about opportunities, expand your prospects and land a new job. It doesn’t have to be a formal or stuffy process either.

A simple conversation among friends about your job search or a message to an acquaintance in your field could bring up new opportunities. You might even find out about jobs before they are posted.

If you’re currently looking for a new opportunity, don’t discount the power of reaching out to a few connections. 

It’s estimated that 70 – 80% of available jobs are never posted.

4. Talk with a recruiter 

Lastly, if you are looking for a new job, we suggest you build a relationship with a recruiter in your industry. Look for recruiters who are searching for candidates for the opportunities within your skillset. Recruiters receive new positions to fill every day, and you never know when they may be looking for someone just like you.

Having a conversation with a recruiter gives them the chance to get to know you, understand what you are looking for, and keep you in mind for future searches.  

We hope these tips help you expand your job search and find your next opportunity.

For additional support developing your resume and marketing materials or preparing for interviews, please contact Heather Christensen at hchristensen@peoplefirsthr.com

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Networking over the summer? “Absolutely!” say People First Career Management consultants, who encourage using networking – regarded as the best tool in your career development toolbox – 12 months a year.  Summer can afford time to strengthen, plan and flex your networking muscles. Opportunity can be around any corner – so it’s important to know and be comfortable with your plan and skills. People First consultants provide guidance to clients in all these areas.

The summer is generally seen as a time when “things slow down”. Folks often pause and escape to a favorite location or activity — making the most of sunsets, the outdoors and time with friends and family. So, how does networking fit into this easy-going summer vibe, when it seems like “work” slows down?

Time To Reimagine, Plan and Practice

Being on “summer-time” creates space to relax and reflect on your career path. Let your mind wander to imagined possibilities. Take stock of your job knowledge, experience and strengths.  Journal what your next job looks like and how to make it happen. Perhaps you already have identified your next dream job. Summer can be a fertile time to plot a vital step in your pivot – savvy networking.

Networking is essentially building and retaining relationships with key people to grow your circle of contacts in a purposeful way.  Friends, relatives, acquaintances, neighbors, past co-workers and suppliers are examples of key people. Brainstorm a list of such people in your life. Create a script of information about yourself and questions for your networking target with the goal of a two-way exchange of knowledge. You want to present yourself in the best light as well as gain insight on potential opportunities. People First Career Management consultants coach clients to achieve optimum networking experiences using active listening, strategic interrogative skills and open-ended conversation, as well as caution to avoid dead-end pitfalls like the expert-agreed number 1 “No-No” – asking for a job during a networking exchange.

“Ready, Set, Go” Approach to Networking

Networking can take many forms.  For example, there are planned exchanges over which you have some control.  And unexpected – surprise if you will – networking situations that happen organically.  Summer can be delightfully sprinkled with informal, casual networking moments on the dock, patio or golf course.  Conversations often flow to topics of work or people in common, therefore bridging to your networking messages can be a natural extension. It is important to be able to recognize these instances and be sufficiently prepared and comfortable with your script in order to genuinely and naturally respond.

Considering that 80% of jobs are not posted, in-person networking – whether orchestrated or organic – is the single most successful pathway to the “hidden job market”.  Keep your career marketing profile up to date for a “ready, set, go” approach to networking this summer and every season of the year.

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Pivoting Careers

Career Management

People First Career Management consultants listen first and consult second – providing customized, objective advice and direction to help our clients move forward. This is especially true in cases where clients have lost employment and want to capitalize on the opportunity to research, pivot and try something new. They may not have had this chance before, feeling stuck in a job with no other alternatives. This newfound time allows room for self-evaluation to see with fresh perspective previously unconsidered options and directions.  

More than ever, we are finding individuals invested in using this time to reflect, strategize and pivot. Our consultants guide their clients through this change process in several measurable and strategic ways:

  1. Strengths Assessment – We provide various assessments enabling clients to better understand not only their range of skills, but also how to translate those skills in interview settings or networking situations. Assessment outcomes also highlight the work environments most suited to clients’ skill profiles and goals.
  2. Functional Resume – This is a must when pivoting careers! Our consultants help clients to develop a functional resume with a focus on transferable skills.
  3. Prepared Script – Improvising in networking or interview settings is not a recipe for success. For maximum impact in these often stressful and unpredictable situations, a prepared script is key to making an impression and communicating clearly. Our consultants are trained to help clients refine and strengthen messages that impress and resonate.
  4. First 90 Days – Once a new role is landed, our consultants support the transition and continue to work with clients to help them adjust and be successful.  In any new position, it is critical to understand the environment, yet it can be particularly daunting when a client has pivoted to a completely new field. A consultant is available to be that impartial and trusted sounding board as an individual navigates these changes.

Transition Program leads to career pivot success story!

A senior level client lost her employment after working in an industry for over 25 years and managing hundreds of individuals and many site locations. Because a continued income was critical, she took a position with a new organization far below her capabilities and made the best of it.  In her short time with this organization, she recognized many opportunities for improvement which she discussed with her Transition Program consultant.  After encouragement from her consultant, she addressed these improvements with her manager and was subsequently promoted to a position in line with her skills and experience. This client transitioned to a different sector, yet her new employer recognized her skills as transferable thanks to the relationship between client, organization and People First.  

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Five Ways Career Transition Services Supports
Employee Mental Health

Career Management

It’s easy to say that providing career transition services is the right thing to do. After all, it helps departing employees to find new opportunities. However, career transition support is more than helping someone find a new job; it’s a way to support employees during times of change – both those departing and those remaining with the company. Specifically, career transition services can help support employee mental health. Here are five ways a partnership with People First HR’s Career Management team supports employee mental health.

Getting Home Safely

After receiving the notification, an individual may experience a range of emotions: stress, shame, sadness, anger. Having a consultant onsite ensures support for the individual immediately after the notification. The consultant can assess the individual’s emotional state and help them exit the workplace. The consultant can provide taxi chits if the individual is not okay to drive home or doesn’t have a ride, which allows the individual to exit the workplace right away. This helps eliminate waiting time which can result in an increased range of emotions including anxiety, sadness and anger.

Post-Notification Support

Once the termination is complete, it is normal for you, as a manager, to worry and wonder about your employee and their emotional state. It’s unlikely, however, that you’ll be able to communicate with the departed employee. With career transition services, a consultant can check in with the individual later in the day to ensure they are doing okay. The consultant will talk to the individual about the emotions they may be experiencing, helping them to refocus and move forward.

Professional Referrals

While our consultants are great at providing emotional and practical support to departing employees, they can recognize when an individual should see a health professional.  Asking for help is not easy, and an individual who is in a fragile state may not realize they need assistance. Our consultants are there for your departed employee when it is needed most.

Leader Support

Businesswoman using mobile phone

Letting someone go is never an easy decision or conversation. For some, this may be the first time notifying an employee of job loss, and for others who have already had this experience, it might make you feel stressed and anxious to do it again. With career transition services, a consultant is with you every step of the way. As you make decisions around the process, your consultant will help ensure you feel comfortable and confident with the messaging and logistics for the notification meeting. Your well-being and mental health are just as important during this process.

After the departed employee engages in their career transition program, you will receive high-level updates, giving you peace of mind that the departing employee is being taken care of and supported.

Minimize Disruption and Fear to Remaining Staff

Often during times of transition, the focus is on the departing individual. You may forget to think about how the news may affect the remaining employees. Learning that a colleague has lost their job can cause stress and uncertainty, which may impact performance going forward. Career transition consultants can help guide you through the delivery of the message to the remaining employees to help the team feel safe and secure, especially for larger group notifications. As well, by providing transition services, your remaining employees will know that their organization cares and, if they find themselves in the same situation in the future, they will be treated with the same respect and dignity.

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Knowledge Leadership: Employee Engagement Insights During COVID-19

By Pat Hirst, Senior Consultant – HR Consulting

“Knowledge is defined as the understanding of or information about a subject  that you get by experience and study”

Source: Cambridge Dictionary

Knowledge Leadership

Traditionally, leaders have subscribed to the adage that information is power.  However, today as we drown in a flood of information from multiple sources, we realize that information is not the competitive advantage; knowledge is!  Knowledge is the result of taking information and applying it in a hands-on way, to discover what works. Through their insight and courage to transform concepts into actionable tools and best practices, leaders create a culture of knowledge leadership and high performance. COVID-19 has given us the perfect storm in which to test information and theories about remote work and put them into practice.

CPHR Executive Virtual Breakfast with Knowledge Leaders

People Corporation and People First HR were privileged to host a group of 30 senior leaders, from a breadth of industries, during our fall Executive breakfast with CPHR. The topic; Engagement in the Time of COVID-19. The results; a wealth of insight, experience and best practices shared by knowledge leaders for all to apply.

The pandemic has impacted the Canadian and global workforce in many unforeseen ways.  The decision for many employers to start a remote workforce was made quickly in response to public health orders.  Employee engagement (EE) is one area that has been impacted by this action.

Prior to COVID, EE was supported through transparency in leadership and enhanced communication strategies.  The pandemic has for the most part removed physical engagement opportunities.

Gallup Polls reports huge fluctuations in EE throughout COVID-19. The biggest change is a 4% increase in employees who are actively disengaged; reflecting a drop in engagement of managers, who are fatigued and disheartened with the constant churn.

We posed the question to the leaders in our session, “How has engagement in your organization changed since COVID-19?”

In an on-line survey, 74% indicated a slight decrease in engagement, 21% indicated a slight increase in engagement and 5% noted no change.

What pandemic related factors are impacting Engagement?

Two stressors have been identified across several sectors of the economy since the beginning of the quarantine; psychological health and financial well-being.

According to Harvard Business Review, 53% of employees feel more exhausted, and 45% report the stress and anxiety of COVID-19 has had a negative impact on their mental health (National Law Review).

Employee Benefits are a Critical Part of Supporting Employees During the Pandemic

HR professionals have been forced to pivot to other tools, benefits and programs for supporting engagement in a remote environment. Reassessing programs will ensure that employee benefits and health services are still meeting the needs of a remote workforce during and after the pandemic.

Psychological Health

Employers are focusing on enhancements to current mental health offerings by adding components of telemedicine or virtual healthcare to improve availability and access to resources.  Statistics show that 20% of employers have added virtual health to their benefit program and over 50% of employers surveyed (June 2020 IFEP Report) have invested in improving mental health offerings. 

Financial well-being

Additionally, 38% of employers surveyed experienced a hiring freeze, 28% were forced to lay off workers, 20% reduced available hours and 17% reported the use of unpaid leave (IFEP).  Providing financial planning advice as a service through group insurance programs can be a cost-effective way for employees experiencing financial stress to weather this storm.

Best Practices for Engagement during COVID-19

Our leaders shared their best practices for engaging teams on-site and working remotely during COVID-19:

  • Be flexible. Offering split shifts, a mix of working at home and on-site, or adjusted work hours provide options
  • Stay safe. Provide COVID safe procedures, PPE and social distancing
  • Listen. Acknowledge your team’s experiences and address their concerns
  • Keep in contact with remote staff. Leaders managing dispersed teams check in regularly
  • Encourage time off & self-care.
  • Keep employees on LOA engaged.
  • Keep Checking. There is no better time to understand employee needs than during a crisis.
  • Pivot, Pivot, Pivot – this pandemic is a long way from over. Agility prevails

For as much as leaders have learned and succeeded during COVID, they also shared there is more to learn. Some key challenges remain:

  • On-Boarding. Hiring a candidate virtually is challenging and orientation can seem impossible
  • Sadness.  The emotional toll of COVID-19 has left employees exhausted, fatigued and in need of emotional support.
  • Socializing & Connection. Making the effort to schedule virtual social time can help employees who miss human connections

A final survey question was asked of the group, “What words pop in your head, concerning engagement, as you leave the session?” The most frequent responses included communication, passion, commitment, creativity and connection. It is no surprise that our group of leaders used “people focused” words to describe engagement, a people focused endeavor.  We will continue to learn about engagement through the changing landscape of COVID-19 and we will continue to share what we have learned. This is knowledge leadership in action.

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Going Virtual with the Workforce

By Deanna Lanoway, VP – HR Consulting

Many companies have adjusted well to remote work during the pandemic.  Some found it to be really positive for them and have decided to adopt a fully remote workforce.  Their motivations are clear – savings in real estate and occupancy costs, the ability to access the right talent anywhere, and productive employees who didn’t miss their commutes. As we continue to manage the difficulties of the second wave, this month’s newsletter focuses on what employers should consider when implementing a remote workforce, whether on a temporary basis or more permanently.

As more firms may consider making their next job postings national if having virtual employees is a new possibility for the organization, they may be wondering what needs to change in their HR practices to make it possible for their employees to live, work, and thrive anywhere.  Here are some considerations:

Legal or tax considerations

When employees live in a different province than your main operations, you should ensure their payroll is set up for deductions according to the province where they reside, not your own location.  Workers Compensation rules and rates also differ, and you need to be compliant in the province where the work is being completed.  All this can add complexity but is really necessary for a distributed workforce.

Vacation and Stat Holidays

Vacation minimums and statutory holidays differ by province.  Saskatchewan, for example, requires each employee receive a minimum of 3 weeks’ vacation after a year of service, while Manitoba only requires 2 weeks. As you add employees outside of your own region be sure you check legislation and comply with minimums.

Many organizations seek a unified approach to vacation and stat holidays. Best practice is to ensure equitable treatment, so you may need to offer more than the minimum in some provinces in order to offer a consistent and fair approach across all of your employees. 

Compensation practices

One of the biggest questions for employers with staff across the country is how to compensate employees in different regions.  Although it can sometimes be harder to find talent in smaller markets, you may be able to acquire them with more affordable compensation because the cost of living is lower.  

This type of question needs to be informed by your compensation philosophy – if you have one, now is the time to revisit it and update it if necessary, to include this decision.  You can do one of two things:  Assess market rates across the country and pay your employees according to the market rate where they live or provide the same compensation ranges regardless of where people live across the country, as long as they are performing the same job.  There are benefits and drawbacks to both approaches.  The most important thing is to make that decision, be sure you stand by it and communicate it appropriately as you establish compensation for new hires.  If you don’t have a compensation philosophy established yet, this is a great time to create one.

When employees are working from home on a permanent basis, you need to outline the services and equipment that you require them to have, like a minimum speed Internet service, a printer, or a landline.  Best practice is to provide reimbursement, or expressly state that remuneration is inclusive of any home-office costs for remote employees.   Any existing employees that transitioned from in the office to working from home are likely to expect reimbursement or a raise to compensate for any mandatory costs.  Ensure you write your policy before communicating your choice.

Occupational Health and Safety

Even if employees work from their own homes, employers are still legally responsible for ensuring a workplace that is safe – how will you do that?  At minimum, you should have ergonomic information and wellness tips that are relevant for working at home.  If you are establishing a fully remote workforce, you may decide to invest in a specific office furniture and equipment package that can be shipped anywhere in the country, or at least to include an ergonomics assessment that can be conducted by a local OH&S consultant in your remote onboarding process.

Collective Bargaining Agreements

If you are hiring outside of your market for unionized roles, best practice is to consult with your union to understand if they feel the practice may need to be discussed.  Understanding any impact on your collective bargaining agreements is key to establishing any new processes.

Remote Locations

If you can hire employees from anywhere, you may want to consider whether remote locations are suitable, or if you want to require that employees still live in a reasonably accessible area.  There are two reasons to think of it – access to reliable and affordable communications networks, and the ease and cost of transport to a major airport.

Companies that have been distributed for some time can attest to the benefit of occasional group meetings and team-building events.  Once we are on the other side of this Pandemic, the ease and cost of transport for each employee to get from their home to head office or an event facility needs to be considered. 

These basics are a great starting point to build a plan for your transition to a remote workforce.  One of the most important pieces of your plan, however, may be evaluation.  Shifting permanently to working from home can alter almost everything – company culture, productivity, and how your employees manage conflict.  Be ready to evaluate – not just if your employees like the change, but also how they are performing as a team, your organization’s productivity, communication, and retention.  Additional training, different policies, communication tools or performance management practices may be necessary to ensure your success in fully remote work.  The faster you can pivot to meet those needs, the more effective your team will be. 

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Coming Together Without Getting Together – Tips for the Holidays

By the team at People First HR Services

With typical company Holiday parties, galas, dinners and dances off the table this year, the team at People First put their heads together to compile a list of activities that can be hosted virtually to engage your whole team. To celebrate as an organization, our people generated ideas for gift giving and discussed the implications of providing employees with cold hard cash that would have been allotted to typical Holiday Party festivities.

Holiday Party Alternatives

Activities to host over video conference software to keep employees engaged: 

  • Trivia Games – either created by a group of employees on software like ‘QuizUp’ or ‘Kahoot’ or looking to hire a local pub ‘Quiz Master’ to host for you.
  • Bingo – there are several sites online that guide you through the process of creating your own Bingo game with printable Bingo cards for everyone to play along.
  • Awards Show – handing out silly awards to employees for categories like “Most likely to have their dog make a Zoom appearance” or “Most likely to be dressed for work in a ‘business on top and sweatpants on the bottom’ ensemble.”
  • Home-Based Scavenger Hunt – create a list of prompts like “find the weirdest thing in your fridge”, employees can vote for winners in each round. 
  • Cooking Class – provide employees with a basket of groceries and a recipe and everyone can cook, eat and enjoy together.
  • Gingerbread Wars – in advance of the holiday party, send employees gingerbread kits and a list of rules to create a winning structure. Allow time for each employee to show off their stunning creation and encourage employees to vote on the winner (this could even be something that employees’ kids’ and significant others’ can participate in.) 
  • Virtual Escape Rooms – many sites provide a fun and interactive virtual experience that combine puzzle-solving, mystery and discoveries through the use of video conference software. This connects co-workers, families, and friends anywhere in the world. 

Gifts – Shop Local!

Another option is to collect items from some of your people’s favourite local shops and makers. Items may include, specialty cheese, preserves and crackers, hand-crafted pottery, homeware items such as linen napkins, aprons, serving trays, to list a few. If you require more information about local vendors, check in on your local Chamber of Commerce. 

Many local chambers have found creative ways to help shoppers connect with local businesses by highlighting them in gift guides on their websites along with their options for delivery or curbside pick-up.   

Can I Simply Give my Employees Cash?

If your organization decides to provide money in Lieu of virtual get-togethers, you must consider the tax implications. 

After consulting our accountants, they informed us that, generally speaking, as long as the combined fair market value of all gifts and/or awards granted in the year is under $500 then the employer doesn’t have to report it as a taxable benefit on the employee’s T4. If the combined fair market value of all gifts and/or rewards in a year is over $500 then the employer is obligated to input the value over the $500 threshold as a taxable benefit on an employee’s T4.

There are certain guidelines for what types of items are applicable as taxable benefits and what items aren’t, however, cash or near-cash items (re: things that function as cash such as gift cards) always qualify as a taxable benefit. We recommend looking into tax implications. If you require additional information, the Canada Revenue Agency website provides important guidelines regarding gifts.  

From our team to yours we wish you a safe, happy, and restful holiday season, no matter how it looks this year. We look forward to a chance to safely get together again in 2021!