SaskTel

SaskTel's physical workplace is rated as above-average. Across the company, SaskTel employees work in a variety of environments, including traditional offices, call centres and switching stations. Installation and repair personnel work at customer sites throughout the province. At the international division employees work in a variety of work environments, depending on the country and project. Located in downtown Regina, SaskTel's head office is within easy walking distance to restaurants and the city's central Victoria Park, which offers live entertainment, a farmer's market and quiet places to enjoy lunch breaks during the summer months . Inside, the head office features an onsite fitness facility (with free memberships, stationary bikes, stairmasters, rowing machines, weights, cross-trainer, medical department with staff nurse, instructor-led fitness classes, shower facilities); in-house auditorium; employee lounge (which is located in the cafeteria and offers comfortable seating, television as well as self-serve kitchen area); onsite cafeteria (with subsidized meals, special diet and healthy menu items); secure bicycle parking; subsidized car parking; nearby outdoor farmers' market and live entertainment in the summer; variety of restaurants within walking distance.

SaskTel's work atmosphere is rated as exceptional. Head office employees at SaskTel enjoy business casual dress; casual dress Fridays; employee sports teams; organized social events. Individual departments often organize their own events to recognize excellent job performance. The company's social committee also organizes a variety of fun events every year, including curling, hockey, softball and golf tournaments. SaskTel employees also have their own choir that travels to shopping malls and seniors' residences during the Christmas holiday season. Throughout the year, the company also hosts a number of events, including a retirement banquet and a special banquet to honour employees who have 25 years of service with the company.

In celebration of its centennial last year, the company hosted numerous events for its employees and customers across the province, from employee draws for one of five 42-inch LCD televisions to in-store celebrations with cake and prize give-aways for its customers. SaskTel also sponsored four centennial scholarships (to $2,000 each) that were awarded to individuals amongst the general population and one that was available to a SaskTel employee or family member. In addition to the scholarship monies, SaskTel also awarded a matching $2,000 donation that could be directed to the non-profit organization of the recipient's choosing. With employees located across the province, SaskTel is a leader in utilizing its communications network to ensure employees are kept up-to-date about company news, events, goals and objectives. Throughout the year, SaskTel captures employee feedback and keeps employees up-to-date through email updates; monthly online video reports from the President and CEO (with an online forum for asking direct questions); quarterly conference calls for managers; an annual leadership conference; company newsletter; corporate intranet site; email suggestion box.

SaskTel's financial benefits are rated as very good. To keep salaries competitive the company participates in outside salary surveys every 12 months. (Union employees receive salary increases in accordance with their collective agreements.) SaskTel also provides defined contribution pension plan with employer contribution (up to 7% of salary); life & disability insurance; retirement planning assistance; subsidized home Internet access; discounted company products (10% discount at company stores); low-interest home loans; and a flexible spending plan where 1% of salary can be allocated to the pension plan, to the health plan or a wellness account. (Depending on the position, employer contributions to the pension plan may range up to 9%).

SaskTel's health and family benefits are rated as very good. The company's health benefits plan is managed by Great-West Life. As part of the health plan, the employer pays 100% of the premiums. Employees who work 13 hours per week receive coverage. The waiting period for new employees is 180 days. Employees receive full family coverage on the health benefits plan. The basic plan includes routine dental; restorative dental; orthodontics; eyecare ($250 every 2 years); traditional medicine coverage; alternative medicine coverage; massage therapy; medical equipment and supplies; homecare; travel insurance. The company's family friendly benefits include; maternity top-up payments (to 95% of salary for 17 weeks); flexible working hours; telecommuting; 35-hour work week (with full pay); shortened work week (fewer hours with less pay); compressed work week; earned days off (EDO) program.

SaskTel's vacation and personal time-off are rated as very good. New employees receive 3 weeks of vacation allowance after their first year. Vacation increases after 8 years on the job. Long-serving employees receive a maximum of 6 weeks of vacation each year. Employees can schedule 5 personal days off each year, as needed. Employees receive 93 paid sick days every year. SaskTel considers previous work experience when setting annual vacation for new employees. Employees can also apply for an unpaid leave of absence.

SaskTel's employee engagement program is rated as above-average. Employees receive individual performance reviews every 12 months. Informal progress reviews are also held during the year. Managers receive training in how to conduct effective performance reviews. Performance feedback is also solicited from co-workers and other managers familiar with each employee's work. As part of the review process employees can provide confidential feedback on their manager's performance. As part of the review process, employees solicit feedback from their peers, evaluate their own performance and receive coaching from managers throughout the year. To complement this process, SaskTel has developed an intranet tool that guides employees through the self-assessment process so they can develop their own career action plans. In some departments, employees have the opportunity to provide confidential feedback on their manager's performance.

SaskTel recognizes exceptional performance through a traditional performance based awards program, with management bonuses based on both corporate and individual job performance and a monthly program (called Take the Lead and Win) for its top performing sales employees. The company recently introduced a new peer recognition program for all employees (called the Alex Awards) that lets employees nominate colleagues for recognition awards through the company's intranet site. SaskTel also hosts an annual employee recognition banquet to celebrate long-serving employees (which includes a $500 gift for its longest serving employees), a retirement banquet and various departmental recognition awards celebrations. SaskTel sponsors its own in-house employee satisfaction survey. (Surveys are conducted every 12 months); SaskTel hires an outside consultant to conduct confidential employee satisfaction and engagement surveys. (These surveys are held every 12 months).

SaskTel's training and skills development program is rated as exceptional. Employees receive tuition subsidies for courses related to their position. (The employer subsidizes up to 100% of tuition). Employees may also receive tuition subsidies for courses unrelated to their current position. (The employer subsidizes up to 100% of non-related tuition). In addition to tuition subsidies, SaskTel provides subsidies for professional accreditations; in-house apprenticeship and skilled trades internships; in-house training programs; online training programs; online employee skills inventory; formal mentoring program; career planning services; new employee orientation program; formal mangement training program. For employees living outside Regina, the company's recently update online learning site provides access to essential training programs, with over 1,470 courses available online.

SaskTel's community involvement program is rated as exceptional. SaskTel actively supports an incredible variety of local and national charitable initiatives. Employees take part in the selection of charitable groups assisted each year. Employees receive paid time off to volunteer with their favourite charitable organizations. Through its corporate donations program, SaskTel donated an incredible $2.2 million to over 1,235 non-profit and charitable organizations across the province last year. The company's formal corporate donations program also provides matching donations (to 50%) to an employee-led benevolent fund (called SaskTel Telcare) that raised over $216,000 last year -- together the company and its employees provided $325,000 in cash donations to over 90 charitable organizations, including the Saskatchewan First Nations Winter Games, Kidsport Saskatchewan, the United Way, the Alzheimer Association of Saskatchewan, the Kinsmen Telemiracle Foundation, and the Keewatin Career Development Corporation, to name a few. One of the company's most enduring community programs is the SaskTel Pioneers club that includes current and retired employees. Last year the unique community service club donated over 85,000 volunteer hours (and over $285,000 in cash donations last year) to community projects across the province.

SaskTel also works closely with educational institutions, community initiatives and First Nations communities across the province to promote continuing education and job training. As a result of its many initiatives, the company has hired over 736 summer students over the past seven years, with over 46% of these being Aboriginal, visible minority and disabled students. SaskTel also awards 11 post-secondary scholarships ($3,000 each) annually and summer job placement to students pursuing careers in the telecommunications sector. In addition, SaskTel provides matching scholarship donations in partnership with the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies. Through this annual program, six students receive scholarships ($15,000 each) as well as summer employment opportunities. SaskTel is also a strong supporter of Aboriginal organizations and initiatives across the province, including the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, the Saskatchewan First Nations Winter Games, and the SaskTel Aboriginal Youth Awards of Excellence (in partnership with the Wicihitowin Foundation), to name a few.

A good steward of the environment, SaskTel has a longstanding program of environmental management in the communities where it operates. The company sponsors local recycling projects for a variety of household items, diverting thousands of gallons of paint, tonnes of waste batteries and old telephone directories from landfills every year. Employees also use their expertise (and SaskTel donates the space) to repair and donate surplus computers to local schools and organizations. Since the program's inception in 1994, nearly 30,000 computers have been donated. Most recently, SaskTel has developed an "Ecological Strategy" that commits the company to consider environmental impacts as part of its decision making processes. As a result of this initiative, SaskTel and its employees are reviewing and implementing a range of initiatives to reduce their overall environmental footprint, from office waste recycling program to educational initiatives to new energy-saving equipment retrofits.