City of Vancouver – Progressive Employers of Canada List

Personal/life balance and wellness

The City of Vancouver offers an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) as a joint effort by the Unions/Associations and Management of the City of Vancouver.

Through an external provider the EAP provides access to qualified counselling professionals who can help employees with personal and work-related problems before they affect their health, family or ability to work. The services of EAP are available to all employees, their families and retirees of the City.

The City of Vancouver also encourages its employees to lead healthy and active lifestyles through its Fit City program. Fit City is a health enhancement program which supports and motivates employees in a number of ways including providing classes such as yoga and Pilates that employees can participate in during their lunch hours, publishing a monthly newsletter full of healthy living tips, and hosting annual Nutrition Month luncheons where employees get to try a host of nutritious recipes which they can then make at home for their families.

To further encourage employees to remain active, all City of Vancouver employees may purchase a Target Fitness Flexi-pass at a 44% discounted price which will provide them with unlimited access to the pools, rinks and fitness centres operated by the Vancouver Park Board. If staff want to take their family with them, discounted “drop-in” rates are available on-site for kids or family (these on-site “drop-in” rates for kids and family are also available to members of the public).

Lastly, to help employees stay healthy over the winter flu season, flu shots are offered each year free of charge to all employees.

Access to emergency childcare

Depending on the group which an employee belongs to, they may use up to two accumulated sick leave days per calendar year as “Family Illness” days where no one other than the employee can provide for the needs of an immediate member of the employee’s family (spouse, child or parent) during an illness.

Although not all employee groups are eligible for “Family Illness” days, should a situation arise where an employee needs to be at home to take care of their child, they may use one of their time-off banks such as vacation days.

Flex-time, job sharing and part-time or contract positions

There are a variety of options which exist at the City to support the work-life balance of employees including flexible working hours, reduced hours, job sharing and telecommuting. The available options may vary depending on employee group and operational requirements.

Many opportunities exist throughout the organization for employees who wish to work in a part-time capacity.

By working an extra 30 minutes each day, staff who are eligible to participate in the Earned Day Off (EDO) program earn between15-18 EDO’s a year which can be taken as days off throughout the year to balance their work and personal lives.

Each year City Hall closes between Christmas and New Years. All employees who work at City Hall except those operationally required to be at work are off work during this time. During this 3-day break, employees use 3 of their Earned Days Off.

Also where operationally feasible, staff are allowed to leave early with pay on the afternoon of Christmas Eve which allows them to spend additional time with their families in preparation for the holidays.

Gradual re-entry after maternity leave
While there is no formal policy for gradual re-entry after maternity leave, using their discretion and taking operational requirements into account Managers may work with returning mothers to find acceptable solutions such returning on a part-time basis, and in some cases will returning to full time hours after a period of time. Each situation is addressed on a case-by-case basis.

Lactation rooms

The City does not currently have any designated lactation rooms, although there are meeting rooms which could be reserved for this purpose.

Access to daycare facilities

Across the street from City Hall is a daycare facility operated by the City Hall Child Care Society which receives a subsidy from the City in the form of free rent, maintenance and building upgrades. Priority for available openings is given to children of City employees.

Maternity and parental leave

Birth mothers are entitled to up to 17 consecutive weeks of maternity leave and up to 35 consecutive weeks of parental leave to a maximum of 52 weeks.

The City of Vancouver provides maternity leave top-up to 95% of salary for 6 weeks, and also provides up to another 11 weeks if the birth mother is unable to work due to a valid health reason related to the birth.

An employee who is a parent of a child, other than the birth mother, is entitled up to
37 consecutive weeks of parental leave. Parental leave may be claimed by one parent
or shared between the two parents.

Health and other benefits

The City of Vancouver provides its employees with comprehensive benefit plans which include coverage such as medical, dental, prescription drugs and life insurance – these plans vary depending on the group which an employee belongs too. For non-union (exempt) staff the City provides a flexible benefits plan, which allows employees to tailor their benefits coverage to best meet their personal and family needs, which can be changed on an annual basis.

All benefits plans include coverage for spouses and families.

The Vancouver Employee Savings Plan (VESP) is available to most staff groups. Eligible employees contribute 1.5% of salary with a matched amount by the employer toward a financial savings plan. This savings plan supports employees in saving for the future needs of their families such as a family vacation or their children’s education.

Leaves of Absence

Leaves of absence may be granted on a case-by-case basis for personal, medical, and compassionate reasons.

Other Family-Friendly Activities

Each year, the City’s Engineering Department hosts an annual Family Day invite where employees are invited to bring their families to a fun event featuring kid’s activities such as pony rides, face painting, a magician and a bike safety rodeo!

City employees also actively support the United Way in a variety of ways including a Payroll Deduction Program, Day of Caring participation, an annual Chili Cook-off event and many other fun departmental fundraising activities. Participation in the United Way is a way for City employees to give back to the communities where they live and raise their families.

Beginning in June, 2009, the Sustainable Commuting Program, which is revenue-neutral with employee pay parking being used to fund the program, will promote sustainable commuting for employees working on the City Hall campus. Components of the Sustainable Commuting Program include:

• Guaranteed Ride Home – to guarantee everyone who commutes sustainably a quick, convenient ride home in the event of health or family emergency or approved, unscheduled overtime
• Discounts on transit passes and incentives for biking or walking to work
• Car-pooling incentives
• Car Sharing – Working with the Cooperative Auto Network to provide staff with access to co-op cars, employees can access co-op cars for travelling to meetings or field work as well as for personal needs, such as medical appointments and lunchtime errands

In addition to the many professional training and development opportunities available to staff through the City Learn training program, City Learn also includes courses on Financial Planning, Getting Ready for Retirement and Tax & Investment Planning to help employees make sound financial decisions which impact themselves and their families.