Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield – Winner 2022, Best for All Families
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield strive to reflect the dynamism and diversity of the communities within which they operate and have put measures in place to achieve the best possible balance between work and home life for their employees.
Inclusivity
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfiled’s approach to recruitment is underpinned by their goal to be an employer of choice, from attracting applicants from diverse backgrounds, cultures and family circumstances to accommodating individual needs at interview. ‘Open to talk flex’ is specified on all job ads, and hiring managers are given interview coaching in how to approach conversations around flexible working.
Language used in policies is gender-neutral and recognises the fluidity of relationships and families. Inclusivity is led from the top, as demonstrated by the COO who co-chairs Freehold, the property industry’s LGBTQ+ networking and support forum, and who speaks openly about their experiences.
Family friendly policies
From day one employees can benefit from informal working from home and core hours arrangements, and can request formal flexible working arrangements should they wish. Enhanced leave policies address all types of family circumstance, including menopause, transitioning at work, surrogacy, and pregnancy loss at any stage of gestation. These are available regardless of tenure, position or individual circumstance. Tailored support for employees and line managers is given around family and wellbeing policies and processes. HR provide 121 coaching for line managers when supporting employees through specific challenging circumstances.
Work culture
Employees have a mandatory work-life objective in their annual appraisal, ensuring line managers and employees discuss workload and any personal needs, and jointly identify actions and support to balance work and home commitments. Company-wide WFH and a core hours policy manages expectations around working times and availability. The culture encourages employees to maximise leave entitlements including two paid wellbeing days a year, emails remind employees of support available. Pre-leave coaching and workplace buddies are available for those taking extended leave. The Family Buddy scheme sees current parents providing support to new or returning parents.
The importance of family is recognised with Bring your Kids to Work Day, celebration of Mothers, Fathers, and Grandparents Day, as well as initiatives designed to optimise wellbeing such as Managing the Menopause webinars, Work Life Balance Week and awareness raising weeks.
Employee feedback is sought through surveys which help inform areas of improvement. Last year 100% of participants in the parental leave survey rated the support they received from their line manager and HR as very good or excellent.
This award was sponsored by Fastn.
