Employee Handbook: Education & Development Benefit Program

This is the third post in a six-part series about our journey towards B Corp certification in which we share details about the policies and benefit programs from our employee handbook we find most meaningful.

Creating our employee handbook has been a much more enjoyable and satisfying experience than either of us thought it would be. When we first saw the B Impact Assessment and realized that we’d need to write so many policies and benefit programs, we felt overwhelmed. However, the conversations we’ve had over the past year have helped us clarify how we define workplace culture (and most importantly how to make it inclusive and healthy). In this post, we take a closer look at our Education & Development Benefit Program.

Education & Development Benefit Program

We Offer Full-Time Employees Money & Time To Grow

We love learning and hope you do too!

Smith Assembly reimburses full-time employees up to $1,000 CAD per year towards approved education or development expenses (like a course or conference). In addition, we encourage full-time employees to block off their calendars and dedicate 1 paid day per quarter to professional growth.

Employees accrue a growth day after each quarter of full-time employment and must use them within 12 months of accrual. The four days earned over a year may be used to attend a multi-day conference or course, but employees cannot receive pay in lieu of growth days, cannot roll their growth days over from prior years, and cannot increase the length of their vacation with growth days. Employees who leave the company will not be paid for any unused growth days they may have accrued.

We both consider ourselves lifelong learners. Our growth mindset — the belief that people can improve their knowledge and talents through education, effort, and feedback from others — is integral to our company’s culture and the services we provide. To nurture this learning mindset in ourselves and our team, Smith Assembly provides money and time for professional growth in whatever form that might take for each individual. We believe access to education and development support strengthens curiosity, creativity, and innovation.

How do you inspire yourself and/or your team to learn? Send us a message. We’d enjoy swapping ideas about how to support professional growth!