What makes BC Housing such an inspiring place to work?
Our leadership doesn’t just say our people matter, they back it up with our People Strategy — a wide-ranging set of initiatives created with direct employee consultation. Championed by our CEO, this strategy ensures we receive services, training, support and ongoing programming in six key areas.
1. Leadership & learning
BC Housing places a high value on learning and ensures our employees have the skills and support to deliver on our corporate goals. Every employee receives training in our core competencies of communication, personal effectiveness, results, teamwork and service. We also have an award-winning leadership program and offer job-specific skills training, coaching and subsidies for courses and professional designations to ensure we can excel in our roles.
2. Recruitment, retention & advancement
Our team works with managers in each area of our business to ensure we're bringing the most qualified people into our organization and meeting the often unique requirements of our work and the people we serve. Our comprehensive employee on-boarding program includes a human resources welcome session, orientation housing tour and core competency training. We believe this sets up our new employees for success in their new roles.
3. Rewards & recognition
Our employee programs recognize great performance and give everyone the opportunity to nominate those who go above and beyond. From annual corporate awards to both formal and informal recognitions of great work on a day-to-day basis, our organization takes notice.
4. Health, safety & wellness
Health and safety is a top priority for us — and it shows. We’ve accepted top honours from the North American Occupational Safety and Health Association for our programming, and we continue to build and enhance programs that ensure the safety and support the health and wellness of our people.
5. Employee communication
We engage with our employees in large and small groups and in many different ways. We know two-way communication is vital to the health of our organization, and we put the time and resources into making sure these conversations take place.
We hold a variety of communication forums, including a 150-person semi-annual meeting, ask-anything Q&A with the CEO, one-on-ones and focus groups. We also publish employee newsletters and conduct employee surveys.
6. Corporate social responsibility
livegreen
BC Housing lives green. Sustainability is at the core of everything we do. In 2010 we were among the first public sector organizations to achieve carbon neutral status.
We integrate our livegreen Sustainability Plan with our corporate and branch plans. These initiatives include cutting paper consumption, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from commuting and engaging social housing tenants in sustainability. We're educating builders on best practices and implementing sustainable procurement guidelines. Our livegreen Employee Council supports employees through a broad range of employee programs to support sustainability at home and at work.
Diversity & Inclusion
We recognize that an inclusive and diverse work environment respects the unique characteristics, skills and experiences of all employees. Our Diversity & Inclusion programming includes respectful workplace workshops for everyone.
We offer Understanding LGBTQ Communities training and Working Respectfully with Indigenous Peoples sessions. Our Employee Diversity & Inclusion Committee hosts great events like National Indigenous Day, Canadian Multicultural Day, Pink Shirt Day, Lunar New Year, Black History Month and much more.
Community Connections
Created by employees at one of our semi-annual meetings, our Community Connections Program gives each of us the opportunity to “give where your heart is.” Our employees support community organizations through volunteering, donations and fundraising efforts.
We focus on four pillars: children and youth, families and seniors; poverty; mental health, general health and addictions; and sustainability. The program has raised over $1 million since its launch and continues to bring BC Housing employees together in the spirit of generosity.
Throughout the year and during our annual donor drive, employees may:
- Volunteer via employer-supported volunteerism
- Participate in a fundraising event at work or in the community
- Donate food, clothing, toys and household items
- Donate vacation or flex days
- Give a lump-sum donation
- Pledge ongoing payroll deductions