Family Friendly Policies Yield Employer Accolades
Employers For Childcare held its annual UK Family Friendly Employer Awards at a gala lunch in Galgorm Resort & Spa, Ballymena today (Wednesday, 24 October 2018). Over 150 business leaders from across all sectors and from all parts of the UK gathered together to see Belfast International Airport crowned the overall winner for 2018. The Awards, now in their 8th year, acknowledge and showcase employers who go above and beyond the legal requirements to help staff achieve their desired work-life balance.
Marie Marin, Chief Executive, explains: “Employers For Childcare has been working in partnership with employers for the last twenty years, supporting parents to access and remain in work. Recognising those employers who have truly embraced the family friendly ethos, through these annual Awards, is key to this work. This year we have been delighted by the unprecedented number, and impressive quality, of entries to the Awards. We believe this reflects a shift towards a greater recognition being placed on the value of family friendly policies and employee well-being. More than ever, employers are looking at ways to stand out from the crowd in today’s competitive labour market to attract and keep talent, and increase employee engagement and satisfaction.
“The accolade of ‘Family Friendly Employer’ demonstrates to current and potential employees that a company values and respects its staff. This relates to more than just childcare. The companies who have been recognised today are leading the way in this regard. It’s multi-generational – employees can be spouses, grandparents, siblings and carers and today’s winners have put in place policies and initiatives to take account of this.
“I’d like to congratulate Belfast International Airport who are a worthy ‘Overall’ winner – they have developed and promoted a wide range of family friendly policies over several years, re-evaluating and adapting innovatively to staff feedback. The results speak for themselves, they’ve seen a measurable increase in staff engagement, and employee recognition and satisfaction and plan to roll out more initiatives. Well done to all involved.”
Graham Keddie, Managing Director at Belfast International Airport commented: “We’re delighted to have won the overall Family Friendly Employer Award today. Our employees and their families are central to what we do and they have helped us develop policies which ensure the airport provides essential connectivity for businesses and families in Northern Ireland.”
Sponsored by Worthingtons Solicitors, the Awards are an annual celebration of family friendly employers. Further information about the Awards, and the winners, can be found here.
In addition to the overall winner, the awards were presented in six categories: Small Private Sector, Social Enterprise, Medium Private Sector, Charity, Large Private Sector and Public Sector.
Small Private Sector
Winner: Adventures Day Nursery
Highly commended: ABCO Marine
Social Enterprise
Winner: Clanrye Group
Highly commended: Bryson Charitable Group
Medium Private Sector
Winner: Belfast International Airport
Highly commended: Aisling Daycare
Charity
Winner: The Cedar Foundation
Highly commended: Choice Housing
Large Private Sector
Winner: Allstate Northern Ireland
Highly commended: Citi Belfast
Public Sector
Winner: South Eastern Regional College
Highly commended: Belfast City Council
