Canada's Top 100 Employers (2025) Magazine - Flipbook - Page 41
41
( 2025 ) SPONSOR CONTENT
Loblaw develops its future talent from within
F
or Loblaw Companies
Ltd., being Canada’s largest
private-sector employer
comes with responsibilities
as well as benefits, says its chief
human resources officer, Mark
Wilson.
“Having the most employees –
220,000 colleagues – means we have
the most career opportunities,” says
Wilson. “We also need to foster talent in 2,500 retail locations from No
Frills stores to Shoppers Drug Marts,
plus 30 distribution centres, head
office in Brampton, Ontario, and a
bank. So, it also means Loblaw has a
lot of career development programs.”
“Our purpose is to help people
in Canada live life well. To
do that, we must make sure
that we treat each other,
colleagues and customers
alike, with integrity, respect
and openness.”
— Mark Wilson
Chief Human Resources Officer
Much of that career assistance is
aimed at front-line workers. “How
do we help them progress to being a
lead to being a department manager,
assistant manager, store manager?”
Wilson asks rhetorically, before
listing the company’s role-specific
learning paths and its tuition reimbursement for formal education.
“This is an important pillar for
Loblaw, and a win-win because it’s
great for our colleagues and great
for the company,” says Wilson,
“providing us with tens of thousands
of leaders already in our stores.”
The number of workers seeking
Loblaw careers, combined with the
countless first jobs it provides for so
many young people who go on to
careers elsewhere, plus the millions
of people in Canada who regularly
use its products and services, means
Loblaw has an incredible amount of
interaction with Canadian society.
“We have to be mindful of that
and work hard to earn people’s
trust,” Wilson says. “It has to start
from our core values. Our purpose
is to help people in Canada live life
well. To do that, we must make sure
that we treat each other, colleagues
and customers alike, with integrity,
respect and openness.”
Julie Martin, a district manager
for Maxi, Loblaw’s 67-store Québec
discount grocery chain, echoes
Wilson’s comments. “I started here
as a cashier while still a student
20 years ago and worked in almost
every department while studying
psychology at university and climbing the career ladder,“ says Martin,
who is based in Repentigny, 25
minutes northeast of Montréal.
“What I appreciate most about
my role as district manager is the
opportunity it provides to interact
with and build relationships with
our customers and our colleagues
every day,” she says.
The same commitment to
community and colleagues can
be seen in other aspects of the
company’s workplace culture, says
Wilson, including the President’s
Choice Children’s Charity, which
combats child hunger, the Shoppers
Foundation for Women’s Health and
the Loblaw program that donates
$500 to any charity where a colleague volunteers 40 hours during
Employees at Loblaw Companies are encouraged to give back to
their local communities through a range of volunteer opportunities.
a year. “We send $180 million a year
back into our communities through
these programs,” Wilson says.
“Each store in my district has the
freedom to make a difference in its
community,” says Martin. “From one
town to another, the needs are different, and each store helps according
to those priorities. Whether it’s
through sports, our schools or our
seniors, our colleagues live within
their communities and make a
difference in their own backyards.”
Then there is Loblaw’s recently
enhanced mental-health support.
$
500
“We increased the amount of financial coverage from $750 to $3,500,
and set up a system to ensure our
people know that it’s okay to need
support, and that there are resources
available.”
Martin is particularly proud of
her employer’s actions in regards to
mental health. “The investment and
support have been phenomenal” she
says. “Every day, we take care of our
colleagues, we listen to what they are
going through, and we make sure to
support them when they are going
through difficult times.” ¢
$
matching donation for every 40
staff volunteer hours
3,500
mental health practitioner benefit
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