BCAA voted one of the best places to work

The Psychologically Healthy Workplace Collaborative [PHWC] honoured seven B.C. organizations Thursday for their contribution to the psychological health of their staff.

A unique program that BCAA has is their mentorship program for leaders and staff. Staff are paired with a manager and they meet regularly to work on their goals. And managers are paired with senior management to work on personalized goals.

Other winners are: Vancouver International Airport Authority (for work-family-life balance); WorkSafeBC (health and safety); Vancouver Community College (employee recognition); Westminster Savings Credit Union (work-family-life balance); Executive Strategies (employee involvement); and Cariboo Chilcotin Child Development Centre Association [employee growth and development].

BCAA human resources director John Allen said in an interview that he was thrilled with the award. “We put a lot of energy into employee development and growth opportunities as well as employee wellness programs

Allen said that since then, BCAA has seen double-digit growth in revenues and profits each year. “Employee engagement and morale definitely contributed to that.

Read the Vancouver Sun for the full story.

Work Smarter not Harder

The 80 – 20 rule also called the Pareto Principle has been around for awhile and is a new way of working and focusing one’s energies. It comes from the business world and it was observed that 80% of sales comes from 20% of customers.

However this rule can be applied to your life in a very practical way. For example, 80% of your e-mails are sent to 20% of your address book — 20% of your clothing is worn 80% of the time.

80% of results (what you want to achieve) comes from 20% of your effort (energy).

And for the perfectionists out there that want it all (100% results) — to achieve that other 20 % (perfection) will take an additional 80 % of your energy — the cost is high — you do the math — you may also know this experience as Burn Out.

Sounds Easy and it is — it is about working smart and setting priorities. It is now more important than ever to work smart – our energy is too precious to waste.

So ask yourself in each and every moment , ” Is this the best use of my time and energy ? Is there someone else that could being doing this job? ” “Is this task done or have I toppled over into perfectionism?”

Work smarter, not harder !

Hari Bhajan Khalsa

Book a Free 30 min. session of Workplace Wellness

http://www.wellnesscatalyst.com/

Balance in Work and Home – is it possible ? YES !

In a recent article from the Georgia Straight entitled Balancing work, home boosts well-being, only 27% of Canadians thought that a balance between work and home is possible.

It is understandable most workers would feel this way in our “culture of productivity” with the pressure on people to produce more in less time while caring for children or elderly parents. Furthermore, just 29% of Canadians think that their employer truly cares about their family and personal priorities.

The poll (Desjardins Financial Securtity Insurance Company) also found that values most important to Canadians are family (54%), honesty (25%) and good health (23%), followed by work (10%) and money (5%).

Many managers still reward workers who come into the office early, stay late and take work home with them. It only takes common sense and a little foresight to realize that this lifestyle is not sustainable.

These unrealistic work demands come at a high cost to the employer like absenteeism, high prescription drug costs, increased use of employee – assistance programs and high employee turnover.

It doesn’t cost that much money to implement a workplace wellness program in your workplace to bring values of community (family), honesty and good health. It can be a win-win for employee / employer relationships.

Contact Catalyst to learn more about Workplace Wellness services that are offered.

Employees want more perks on the job: survey

This article was found on the Canadian HR Reporter

Only 1 in 5 employers provide pay raises, flexible scheduling and wellness programs

Only 20 per cent of Canadian employees enjoy corporate wellness programs that include such perks as fitness and nutritional coaching, gym memberships and opportunities for professional growth, according to a new poll.

Almost 70 per cent of 2,857 Canadians who participated in a recent online poll at online career site Monster.ca said they wished their employers offered such incentives.

“While not everyone appreciates a corporate wellness program, conventional research has always indicated that a contented and happy worker is typically more productive,” said Gabriel Bouchard, vice-president and general manager, Monster Canada.

“Canadian businesses lose billions of dollars every year on sick days, employee absenteeism and stress leaves. With the labour shortage already affecting much of Canada, it will be interesting to see the rise in corporate wellness programs and other workplace benefits.”

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“The workplace has become increasingly competitive,” said Bouchard. “In this new labour market, the power now shifts from traditional employers to job seekers. Employers will soon have to provide incentives to retain their employees or risk disruptions in productivity.“