Top Employer: Fowler Bauld & Mitchell Ltd.

Recognized as one of Canada's Top 100 Employers (2023), Atlantic Canada's Top Employers (2022) and Nova Scotia's Top Employers (2022):

Mediacorp Canada Inc. staff editors (Nov 17, 2022)

Here are some of the reasons why Fowler Bauld & Mitchell Ltd. was selected as one of Canada's Top 100 Employers (2023), Atlantic Canada's Top Employers (2022) and Nova Scotia's Top Employers (2022):

FBM offers a family-friendly work environment, with a generous maternity and parental leave top-up policy and up to 12 personal days each year -- the company also recently introduced a compressed work week option, which enables employees to work extra hours throughout the week in order to take Fridays off
FBM lets everyone share in the company's success with profit-sharing and year-end bonuses -- and offers generous referral bonuses for employees who successfully recruit friends (ranging from $1,500 to $3,000)
FBM takes a thoughtful approach when helping employees manage unexpected challenges, offering compassionate leave top-up for those called upon to care for a loved one (to 100 per cent of salary for up to eight weeks)

FBM's recreational ball hockey team, the Frank Lloyd Wright Wings

Employer Background

Industry	Architectural services
Established in Canada	1917
Major Canadian hiring locations	Halifax NS
Full-time employees in Canada	43
Part-time employees in Canada	2
Average age of employees in Canada	39 years
Longest serving employee	51 years

Work Environment Rating: B

Hybrid work	longstanding hybrid work program including work-from-home option and flexible hours
Flexible work options	flexible work hours, 35-hour work week (with full pay), compressed work week, telecommuting
Commuter amenities	walk to public transit, transit subsidies, secure/sheltered bicycle parking
Onsite workplace features	industrial open-concept office is located in the heart of Halifax's historic downtown, near Citadel Hill and the waterfront, inside, the workplace features continuous, 6-foot long workstations that allow personal space to merge with design space and create a collaborative working environment, sit-stand workstations, private phone booth, self-serve lunchroom, and shower facilities

Work Atmosphere & Communications Rating: B+

Employee social committee name	FBM Social Committee (est. 1999)
Past social events	office-wide boat cruise on Halifax Harbour, holiday party for employees and their families
Cultural aspects	business-casual dress daily, dress-for-your-day policy, casual dress (e.g. jeans) daily, music while working, can bring pets to work when needed, employee sports teams
Employee communications	traditional/email suggestion box

Financial Benefits & Compensation Rating: B+

Employee salary reviews	individual salaries are reviewed every 12 months
Long-term savings	matching RSP, non-matching RSP
Long-term planning	retirement planning assistance, phased-in retirement work options
Share purchase plan	available to all employees
Profit-sharing plan	available to all employees
Year-end bonuses	available to all employees
Referral bonuses (max)	new employee referral bonuses (up to $3,000) for some positions
Additional financial benefits	discounted home insurance, discounted auto insurance

Health & Family-Friendly Benefits Rating: A

Health plan premium	as part of the health plan, the employer pays up to 50% of the premiums
Flexible coverage	health plan is flexible with adjustable premiums and coverage levels
Waiting period	there is no waiting period for coverage
Retiree coverage option	up to 70 years of age
Dental coverage	routine, restorative, orthodontics
Eyecare	$100 every 2 years
Paid sick days	employees receive 12 days off each year
Health plan includes	traditional coverage (e.g. prescription drugs), employee assistance (EAP) plan, semi-private hospital room, physiotherapy, medical travel insurance, homecare, medical equipment and supplies, massage therapy, nutrition planning, podiatrist, osteopathy, chiropractor, alternative coverage (e.g. acupuncture, naturopathy), virtual healthcare services
Mental health practitioner benefit	up to $500 each year
Wellness spending account	up to $300 each year
In vitro fertilization (IVF)	$3,000 per lifetime
Maternity top-up (mothers)	up to 95% of salary for 16 weeks
Parental top-up (mothers)	up to 95% of salary for 61 weeks
Parental top-up (fathers)	up to 95% of salary for 77 weeks
Adoption top-up	up to 95% of salary for 77 weeks
Additional family-friendly benefits	phased-in return to work for new parents, compassionate top-up to 100% of salary for 8 weeks

Vacation & Personal Time-Off Rating: C+

Vacation allowance	new employees receive 2 weeks of paid vacation after their first year on the job
Vacation jump	vacation increases after 5 years of employment
Maximum vacation allowance	employees move to a maximum of 4 weeks of vacation over their career
Previous experience	considers previous work experience when setting annual vacation for new employees
Paid holiday shutdown	during the Christmas to New Year's holiday break, employees receive an additional 5 days off
Unpaid leave of absence option	yes

Employee Engagement & Performance Rating: B

Employee performance reviews	employees receive individual performance reviews every 12 months
Confidential employee feedback	employees can also provide confidential feedback on their manager's performance
Exit interview	exit interview option is available for departing employees
Performance recognition	individual performance bonuses

Training & Skills Development Rating: A

Career planning	in-house career planning services
In-house training initiatives	mentoring, in-house training, online training, paid internships, subsidies for professional accreditation, mentoring to transfer retirees' skills
Tuition subsidies (related to job)	yes
Tuition subsidies (unrelated to job)	yes
Unique training & development programs	Design Discussions (in-house lecture series on current projects)

Community Involvement Rating: B+

Scope of charitable involvement	local
Employee charitable involvement	employees are involved in selection of charities, employees receive paid time off to volunteer
Total employee volunteer hours (on company time)	over 214 hours last year
Total number of charities supported last year	approximately 6 charitable and community organizations were supported last year
Some of the community organizations supported	Out of the Cold, Souls Harbour Rescue Mission, IWK Children's Hospital, Plaid for Dad, Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, The Youth Project
Charitable giving	matches employee donations
Community highlight	FBM established a Community Connections group to carry out the development of long-term community initiatives such as sustainability, affordable housing advocacy, equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility.

Recognized as one of Canada's Top Small & Medium Employers (2022):

Mediacorp Canada Inc. staff editors (Apr 4, 2022)

Here are some of the reasons why Fowler Bauld & Mitchell Ltd. was selected as one of Canada's Top Small & Medium Employers (2022):

FBM Architecture encourages employees to become recruiters to the firm through a generous new employee referral bonus program, from $1,500 to $3,000 depending on the position
FBM Architecture quickly moved employees to work-from-home arrangements and worked to ensure that everyone had the required equipment to set up their home workspaces -- the transition was made easier by building upon its existing flexible work options

Employees at the FBM Architecture head office (Photo credit: Greg Richardson)

Highlights

Industry	Architectural services
Established in Canada	1917
Publicly traded	yes
Major Canadian hiring locations	Halifax NS
Full-time employees in Canada	46
Part-time employees in Canada	2
Full-time employee growth in the past year	27.8 %
Average age of employees in Canada	39 years
Longest serving employee	50 years
Long-term savings	matching RSP, non-matching RSP
Health plan premium	as part of the health plan, the employer pays up to 50% of the premiums
Flexible work options	flexible work hours, 35-hour work week (with full pay), telecommuting
Vacation allowance	new employees receive 2 weeks of paid vacation after their first year on the job
In-house training initiatives	in-house training, online training, mentoring, paid internships
Tuition subsidies (related to job)	yes
Performance recognition	individual performance bonuses

Fowler Bauld & Mitchell Ltd.

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