Progressive Workplaces Are Still in Vogue: Winners of the 2012 Canada's Top 100 Employers Competition Are Announced

TORONTO, Oct. 7, 2011 /CNW/ - With all the talk of a double-dip recession and slow economic growth, you might be excused for thinking that employers had gone back to the old days, when just having a job was good enough for most folks. But you'd be missing one of the most dramatic transformations taking place in Canada's economy - today's announcement of the 2012 winners of the annual Canada's Top 100 Employers competition shows just how serious the nation's leading employers are about recruiting and retaining the best employees.

"We received a record number of employer applications this year," says Richard Yerema, Author of Canada's Top 100 Employers at Mediacorp Canada Inc., which manages the competition. "We saw double-digit growth from all regions of the country, across industry categories and especially from the public sector.  We have been organizing this competition for 12 consecutive years and have never seen this level of attention from employers."

To develop this year's Top 100 list, Mediacorp examined the recruitment histories of over 75,000 employers across Canada that it tracks for its popular job search site, Eluta.ca. From this initial group, editors invited 12,000 of the fastest-growing employers to apply, plus another 5,000 companies and organizations in industries that it wanted to examine more closely.  Employers completed an extensive application process that included a detailed review of their operations and HR practices. Over 2,750 employers started this year's application process. The final applicant pool was up 15% over last year's total, which was also a record.

What explains the surge in interest?  "The reality of Canada's labour market is that the unemployment rate in many key occupations is less than four percent, even in the current economic climate," says Tony Meehan, Publisher at Mediacorp.  "The steady march of demographics is bringing many employers to the realization that they need to become more attractive places to work - not just to ensure future growth, but simply to maintain the operations they have now."

The unique feature of the Canada's Top 100 Employers project is that its editors publish detailed reasons explaining why each winner is selected, providing transparency and guidance for job-seekers and employers alike. These reasons - which run more than 300,000 words annually -- are published exclusively on Eluta.ca, where they can be read free of charge. Each winner is graded by Mediacorp editors on eight key areas: (1) Physical Workplace; (2) Work Atmosphere & Social; (3) Health, Financial & Family Benefits; (4) Vacation & Time Off; (5) Employee Communications; (6) Performance Management; (7) Training & Skills Development; and (8) Community Involvement.  These criteria have remained consistent since the inception of the Canada's Top 100 Employers project.

The full list of 2012 winners is available online at http://www.CanadasTop100.com/national

About Mediacorp
Founded in 1992, Mediacorp Canada Inc. is the nation's largest publisher of quality employment periodicals and guides. The Toronto-based publisher organizes the annual Canada's Top 100 Employers project, which includes 18 widely followed regional and special-interest competitions. The company also manages the popular job search engine, Eluta.ca, which lets job-seekers find new job postings directly from employer websites, as well as editorial information on what it's like to work at each employer. Last year, more than 5.3 million Canadians used Eluta.ca, making it one of the nation's most-visited career sites.  Mediacorp also organizes several large annual events, including the Top Employer Summit, which is Canada's largest senior-level HR conference, the New Grad Career Expo and the popular Diversity Canada conference.

For further information:

Kristina Leung, Editor 416-964-6069 x1464, [e-mail]