But one insightful conversation I stumbled upon prior to heading into the weekend was an interview on The Ezra Klein Show podcast with writers Anne Helen Petersen and Charlie Warzel about their research on the merits of remote and hybrid work. And if you’re anything like me, you’re suffering from a bit of whiplash on the subject. There’s been a lot of news this week about the return to the office … or the lack thereof. The most compelling data, quotes and insights from the field. You could see your response in a future newsletter.Īmber Burton amberbburton Reporter's Notebook I’m hosting 15-minute desksides with HR and DEI executives. I want to hear from you! What are the biggest HR challenges and priorities today? Reach out to me at. As a company we cannot function optimally if our employees are struggling, and we want to help employees focus on their wellness in meaningful ways. I take advantage of the different programs we offer depending on my own personal needs. Last, but not least, what does wellness mean to you as a CHRO? How has the culture at Horizon shaped your own personal relationship to wellness?įor me, wellness is really focusing and being attentive to the three pillars I mentioned-mental, physical and financial. The overall goal is for the employee to truly be able to disconnect in a significant way that allows them to rest and recharge. People don’t feel they own this time and it’s harder to ask for time-off. We looked at unlimited vacations policies and learned that they often result in employees taking less time off because the rules are not as clear. We increased the number of company days off by seven days. So next year we will have a total of 37 days off for anyone with less than five years of service at the company including PTO, company holidays, a summer break, an end of the year shutdown, several company-wide wellness days, and one personal day for each employee.

In other words, it’s challenging to be “off” when the rest of the business is still operating and in need of support. Employees told us that the days we all have off together are the days that help them recharge the most, whereas when taking time off separately, some feel they need to check email or end up having an increased amount of work to catch up on when they return to work. Why is this possibly better than offering unlimited vacation days?īecause we really value employee wellbeing, we are trying something new related to time off in 2023. Horizon is also notably making a change next year to its time off policy-employees now have a week in which everyone is off at the same time. We currently have around 40 children enrolled in classes ranging from infant to pre-kindergarten. Since opening in January 2021, all the feedback has been positive. And parents have the peace of mind that their child is close, safe and taken care of. “Little Horizons” is provided in partnership with Bright Horizons. Investing in onsite daycare is an extension of our commitment to our employees. Can you share why the company has chosen to invest in this and how it contributes to employee wellness? You mentioned Horizon offers onsite daycare. Our goal is to demonstrate that we hear and understand their unique needs.

As a result, we are very proactive in searching for benefits that support a variety of caregiving scenarios: equal parental leave benefits, caregiver leave, onsite daycare, support for senior care planning, backup care for children and seniors, tuition assistance, and even pet care. Additionally, our employees are patients or caregivers to family members living with health conditions. And our workforce is multi-generational, meaning we have colleagues at Horizon in all facets of their career. Technology and the pandemic have increased the demand on an employee’s personal and professional time. It sounds like Horizon does a lot for employees who are caretakers.

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