City
Lauren O'Neil
Posted on December 09, 2022
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gta top employers

Toronto's top employers for 2023 have been announced

City
Lauren O'Neil
Posted on December 09, 2022
Report Inaccuracy
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It's a good time to be looking for a job in Toronto right now, and companies seeking out new talent know it.

Employers all over the city have been forced to step up their offerings to prospective workers in recent years, thanks to historically low unemployment rates, a strong demand for local talent, and an extended period of lockdowns that prompted what might be the biggest workplace culture shift in modern history.

Work-life balance, mental health, company culture and flexibility have emerged as some of the key factors influencing employees in their decisions to join (or stay with) a specific business, as evidenced by this year's annual list of the Greater Toronto Area's Top Employers.

Mediacorp Canada's 17th annual compendium of the best places to work in Toronto, released on Friday, features 150 different companies that the firm says "have been quick to respond to employee feedback about how, when and where they want to work."

"It turns out people like working from home, at least part of the time, even if the kids are occasionally underfoot," reads an introduction to the list of top local employers for 2023.

"So for any organization competing in the GTA's fierce talent market, flexibility is de rigueur, with full-time in office, hybrid and remote options on offer where possible to accommodate individual needs for work-life balance."

CIBC, for instance, now allows all employees to work from wherever they feel the most productive, whether that's at home or at their brand new global headquarters office, which has its own onsite gym and more than 500 bicycle parking spaces.

The software development firm League offers employees unlimited mental health coverage, unlimited paid time off, and one paid "wellness day" per quarter for employees to simply "relax and recharge."

Employees at League also have access to a "health pause" after five years of employment, allowing them to take up to six weeks off and invest in themselves (be it through travel, education or general wellness) with a one-time payment of $10,000.

Many of the top employers offer new recruits at least three weeks vacation to start, with additional time off over the holidays and during the summer months.

Family benefits are also huge right now, based on this year's list. York Regional Police offer a year of fully-paid maternity leave to new mothers and an additional 35 weeks for fathers or adoptive parents. GlaxoSmithKline offers a compassionate leave top-up of 100 per cent salary when employees are called upon to care for a loved one and Labatt offers fertility treatment subsidies of up to $15,000.

Several of the companies on this year's list of the GTA's top employers offer generous career advancement and learning stipends; Olympus Canada provides employees with up to $5,250 per year to take courses, Unity Health provides up to 98 per cent of tuition for employees who take courses related to their position, and tuition fees are waived altogether for U of T employees to take courses at the university.

"While these top organizations set the standard for doing business in Canada with best practices, they also continue to push the boundaries," writes Mediacorp of this year's list.

"Many recently increased top-up payments for new parents as well as expanding who's included. For example, HarperCollins Canada and Harlequin Enterprises took steps to ensure its top-up policy would be inclusive of all families, with beneficiaries of top-ups defined simply as primary caregivers and secondary caregivers."

The firm also credits the many employers who used time over the pandemic to reimagine their office spaces with new, upgraded tech and design features for employees. FreshBooks has on-site massage chairs and bike repair facilities for workers to use as they like.

"Employee wellness is another priority for all, with several companies doubling their budget for mental health last year," reads the list introduction, which notes that winners are evaluated on the same eight criteria as those at the national level.

"When it comes to innovative and progressive ideas, these are the employers to follow."

Here is the full list, in alphabetical order, of Mediacorp's Top GTA employers for 2023:

Lead photo by

League
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