Working with the Social Committee, the company organizes a traditional holiday party, to which all employees and their spouses are invited. We also encourage our employees and their families to come have fun at free company activities held in the spring and fall. These activities allow employees to see each other in contexts other than at work, and to speak with company management. For example: golf tournaments with inflatable games, sugar shack outings with horse rides, bowling nights, etc. These activities are completely free of charge for our employees and their families.

As soon as an employee becomes eligible, we offer a complete range of benefits: health and paramedical care, life insurance, long-term disability insurance, and travel insurance. We have added a flexible health care component to our program to allow our employees and their families to better meet their group insurance needs.

Senior management is very open to taking on various projects and setting up creative and innovative joint committees. All employees are exempted from their duties and paid to participate in company life. We currently have 6 committees in which several employees are involved: Work Relations, Health and Safety, Training, Retention, Social, and Wellness.

Our joint committees are also being used with increasing frequency. For example, our Work Relations Committee meets on a monthly basis to quickly resolve any problems and answer any questions employees may have.

At BSM, we strongly believe in maintaining regular and transparent communication with our employees. We keep employees up to date on upcoming developments, sales, financial performance, the progress of projects, human resources, the bonus program, etc. We use several communications tools to make sure that information is adequately disseminated: information meetings, general meetings, an internal newsletter, bulletin boards, etc.

Our open-door policy is another way of making sure that information remains easily accessible. All employees know that they can speak to company management. Managers also regularly make their way into the plant to encourage dialogue and meetings with employees.

Lastly, twice a year, we carry out a confidential survey of our employees in an effort to hear their concerns and constantly improve ourselves.

At BSM, our employees’ development and versatility are key elements. Our employees have the opportunity to get trained for more than one position. In this way, the company can take advantage of this versatility when someone is absent, and employees can excel at various tasks. The company has a succession plan for certain key positions, and training remains essential in preparing targeted successors. Our training helps each employee become a better person, both professionally and on a personal level. During evaluation periods, immediate supervisors ask employees to make their training needs known. Each request is assessed, and we offer training based on individual interests and company needs.

From the moment they are hired, employees know that there are good opportunities for advancement if they want to rise through the company ranks. We strongly favour internal promotion. In fact, the majority of our foremen and coordinators are former production employees.

We offer a very complete Employee Assistance Program (EAP). This professional and confidential service is available to all employees, giving them the opportunity to discuss their problems, difficulties, or concerns. EAP professionals help our employees find permanent, fair, and adequate solutions.

The program can also be used to discuss any work-related discontentment or malaise in an anonymous and confidential manner.

Lastly, we also use the services of the EAP to better equip our managers. The training provided by EAP professionals helps our managers better interact with and assist their employees.

We believe in sharing the company’s success with all employees. Our generous bonus program allows us to thank employees, recognize their efforts, and acknowledge their involvement in meeting company goals. To that end, the company has implemented a very advantageous program. The amount paid each quarter is based on department and company objectives. In addition, there is a profit-sharing plan for senior managers, which is also competitive.

In the company’s entrance, a recognition board lists the names of employees according to their years of service. Names are listed once employees have reached 5 years of service. This board allows us to highlight our employees’ loyalty, something which BSM feels is very important. Each year, the company president gives gifts to all employees that have reached milestone years of service. Of course, the longer an employee has been with the company, the more significant the gift. We also take advantage of the occasion to recognize those that are retiring.

Employees are also encouraged to recognize their colleagues’ good work. Each month, we highlight the good work of one “Employee of the Month.” The name of the “Employee of the Year” is announced during our holiday activities.

We offer advantageous, fair, and equitable working conditions. We are committed to comparing ourselves to and remaining competitive with other businesses in the region. After being hired, employees undergo an evaluation and are eligible for raises after two and four months of service. Our pay structure is reviewed on an annual basis. In addition, based on years of service, our employees are eligible for up to six paid leaves per year and up to six weeks of vacation.

In May of each year, all employees meet individually with their immediate supervisor to discuss and review the past year. If applicable, we take the opportunity to recognize the employee’s improvement compared to the previous year. During this performance review, the immediate supervisor recognizes the employee’s good work, establishes goals for the following year, and discusses the progress plan to be implemented or continued. This meeting provides employees with an ideal opportunity to speak to their immediate supervisor. The evaluation concludes with a discussion of salary adjustments based on employee performance.

Our Wellness Committee organizes physical activities for employees. In addition, we reimburse part of the registration fees for physical activities. We also encourage all of our employees to eat a healthy diet.

We strive to always offer a healthy and safe work environment. All BSM managers are committed to maintaining occupational health and safety programs and procedures. No free passes are tolerated: all employees must keep occupational health and safety in mind. All foremen hold regular safety meetings with all employees in each sector.

Our Health and Safety Committee and our prevention cooperative play a big role in ensuring safety and improving our way of doing things. We strongly encourage the sharing of ideas between our facilities, departments, and employees. We are always open to creating a targeted response group to resolve a specific problem.