According to the 10th Annual Health Care in Canada Survey: A national survey of health care providers, managers, and the public, in 2007, 23% of Canadians said that they had cared for a family member or close friend with a serious health problem in the last 12 months. As well, adverse effects on the well-being of carers include: using personal savings to survive (41%) and missing one or more month of work (22%).
Companies need to recognize that employees may occasionally require more time off from work than is strictly accommodated by their regular leave policies in order to provide care or support to specified family members who are gravely ill and terminally ill with a significant certainty of death within twenty-six (26) weeks.
The Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA) Champion’s Council is comprised of industry leaders who have committed to improving the profile of hospice palliative care amongst corporate Canada. They have designed a program to recognize those corporations that have formal policies in place to accommodate employees who may need to take time off work to care for a loved one. A company interested in becoming a CCC sends the relevant portions of their HR policy to CHPCA for review. Qualified companies are then able to proudly display the logo below to show their support for their employees.
The following are the inaugural members of the Canadian Compassionate Companies:
- GSK
- Human Resources Professionals of Canada
- Pfizer Canada
- Fidelity Investments
- Innovative Medicines Canada
This program was officially launched at the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Conference, in Ottawa this past September 21st.
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