> SFU among top family friendly employers
SFU among top family friendly employers
Contact:
Dario Nonis, human resources director, 778.782.3602 (back in Jan.2)
Rob McTavish, chill@sfu.ca (back in town Dec. 28)
Dario Nonis, human resources director, 778.782.3602 (back in Jan.2)
Rob McTavish, chill@sfu.ca (back in town Dec. 28)
December 24, 2007
Simon Fraser University is one of the country’s top 10 family friendly employers, according to Today’s Parent Magazine.
SFU is the only post-secondary institution and one of two employers in B.C. to make the 2008 list.
Among SFU’s strong points, the magazine cites the university’s commitment to topping up parental leave benefits for up to 100 per cent of salary for new mothers, fathers and adoptive parents, and the availability of on-site daycare, including popular summer day camp programs for kids.
The magazine also points to a “distinct surge” in the availablity of a range of salary top-up initiatives – and not just by the expected types of employers.
“We applaud SFU for its commitment to families,” says new mom Cher Hill, an SFU doctoral candidate in education. Her spouse, Rob McTavish, a program director for the Centre for online and distance education at SFU, has been home with baby Kai for the past six months. "I'd like to acknowledge how supportive my supervisors were in my taking the leave - that really made all the difference," says McTavish.
A salary top up shortly after he returns in April will help offset the costs of taking the time to be with his family.
“This means a lot to us – and I would think it would be a great incentive when recruiting top faculty and staff,” says Hill, who is preparing to teach in January while completing her degree.
“It’s wonderful that SFU has family friendly policies in place - I hope this recognition encourages the university to continue working towards other ways to help its employees balance their work and family lives,” says Hill.
Meanwhile, the couple can attest to the popularity of SFU’s Childcare centre - they signed up when Hill was two months pregnant and remain on waiting lists for both infant care and toddler care.
Other top employers cited by the magazine include the Toronto Hydro Corporation, Trican Well Service Ltd (a Calgary oil and gas company), L’Oreal Canada, the Royal Canadian Mint, the office of the Auditor General of Canada, Jacques Whitford Ltd (an environmental consulting firm in Nova Scotia), the Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto, the University Health Network (a health sciences centre in Toronto) and Vancouver based Next Level Games Inc, a custom computer programming firm.
For more on the topic, see the December issue of Today’s Parent
Photo of the family is available
SFU is the only post-secondary institution and one of two employers in B.C. to make the 2008 list.
Among SFU’s strong points, the magazine cites the university’s commitment to topping up parental leave benefits for up to 100 per cent of salary for new mothers, fathers and adoptive parents, and the availability of on-site daycare, including popular summer day camp programs for kids.
The magazine also points to a “distinct surge” in the availablity of a range of salary top-up initiatives – and not just by the expected types of employers.
“We applaud SFU for its commitment to families,” says new mom Cher Hill, an SFU doctoral candidate in education. Her spouse, Rob McTavish, a program director for the Centre for online and distance education at SFU, has been home with baby Kai for the past six months. "I'd like to acknowledge how supportive my supervisors were in my taking the leave - that really made all the difference," says McTavish.
A salary top up shortly after he returns in April will help offset the costs of taking the time to be with his family.
“This means a lot to us – and I would think it would be a great incentive when recruiting top faculty and staff,” says Hill, who is preparing to teach in January while completing her degree.
“It’s wonderful that SFU has family friendly policies in place - I hope this recognition encourages the university to continue working towards other ways to help its employees balance their work and family lives,” says Hill.
Meanwhile, the couple can attest to the popularity of SFU’s Childcare centre - they signed up when Hill was two months pregnant and remain on waiting lists for both infant care and toddler care.
Other top employers cited by the magazine include the Toronto Hydro Corporation, Trican Well Service Ltd (a Calgary oil and gas company), L’Oreal Canada, the Royal Canadian Mint, the office of the Auditor General of Canada, Jacques Whitford Ltd (an environmental consulting firm in Nova Scotia), the Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto, the University Health Network (a health sciences centre in Toronto) and Vancouver based Next Level Games Inc, a custom computer programming firm.
For more on the topic, see the December issue of Today’s Parent
Photo of the family is available