Taking Care of Our Amazing Caregivers and Staff
/The Power of Our People
The most important resource we have at HEEFS is our human resource. And, like everything we do, we take care of our employees with deep consideration, commitment to best practices, and with an open heart. Our entire HR program is built upon our mission to inspire kindness and compassion for farmed animals everywhere, and our guiding principles of peace, love, kindness, compassion, and education. We wanted to share with you some of the important components of our HR Program, a program that you, as a donor to HEEFS, help us offer to the amazing people who take care of our residents and Sanctuary.
Health and Safety
Our HR program began with a strong commitment to health and safety. This included a complete occupational health and safety program for the office and the barn, as well as proper first aid training. Employee Handbook and Group Benefits Plan The next step in our overall HR program was the creation of our Employee Handbook. Our Handbook begins with thanking every one of our employees for being a part of our family, and then goes on to share the various policies employees need to know, such as their entitlement to vacation time, bereavement leave, and personal time. Our Handbook also introduces eligible employees to our group benefits plan which was introduced in 2019. The benefits plan includes important things such as life insurance and accidental death and dismemberment insurance, as well as a flexible spending account for other medical needs including eyeglasses and massages. Both our employee handbook and our group benefits plan were shared with employees during a half-day employee training session. Training also included a comprehensive review of our Respect in the Workplace policy, sometimes called an anti-discrimination and harassment policy.
Performance Management and Compensation
In late 2019, also aligned with our mission and guiding principles, we introduced a formal performance management program. This program has several elements including employee training and development. All of our employees, including our Executive Director, had the opportunity to speak about their performance with their manager. Living Wage Program In alignment with our performance management program, we rolled out a compensation program for 2020. This included a Living Wage income adjustment for all of our employees, something that Derek, HEEFS’ Executive Director, spoke about during one of our Barnside Chats. In order to ensure that this program stays current, and also rewards our employees for their dedication, a 2020 Pay Program is in place based on team goals, the cost of living in the province of Ontario, and a bonus program based on our guiding principles and employee goals.
Leadership Training
Moving into 2020, we are rolling out a Leadership Training program for our management team, and we continue to be committed to internal communications through our suggestion box program, our weekly meetings, and our mid-year performance reviews.
