Your digest

August 6, 2021

We want to make it easy for employees to access the latest from Canadian Blood Services.  Every Tuesday and Friday, we will be bringing you important COVID-19 updates along with valuable information and inspiring stories about other parts of our operations.

We know things are rapidly changing; please remember you can always reach out to communications@blood.ca with your questions and suggestions on how we can better help employees.

Here is the latest.

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Last call for questions for our Aug. 10 live townhall

Next week’s live town hall on Tuesday, Aug. 10 (1 p.m. ET) will have a special focus on the next stage of the pandemic and how we are planning and preparing our facilities for additional employees to return safely to our buildings across the country in September 2021. As always, we encourage you to submit your questions for Graham and our panel of experts on any topic(s) of interest. You can send your email or video questions to communications@blood.ca with the subject line “TOWNHALL” or record an audio question by phoning 1-800-509-2339. Note: if you are submitting a question in advance, we ask that you do so before 5 p.m. ET today, Friday, Aug.6.

Participate in the Aug. 10 live townhall by clicking on the meeting link in your Outlook invite. Can’t make it live? A recording of the event will be available on your COVID-19 employee portal within 24 hours.

Back-to-school (and work) resources to support you and your family’s mental health

It’s hard to believe we are already halfway through the summer, but with the August long weekend now behind us, it’s that time of year where many of us begin thinking about the fall. Whether you have children heading back to school next month, or you are preparing for another busy season of work, September can be a stressful time. That’s why this month’s offering of well-being resources, workshops and events are focused on helping you and your loved ones maintain balance and manage anxiety. Educational resources include back to school resources to help promote a safe and healthy return to school for students of all ages and resiliency resources to help us handle life’s stressors and adapt to changing situations. Lifespeak resources have also been made available to help you better understand and manage anxiety and worry in your child/teen. Visit Connect to learn more about available resources and to sign up for upcoming webinars and events, including a GoodLife wellness session on reducing stress and an ‘Ask the Expert’ webinar on managing your anxiety in a post-lockdown workplace.

Marking the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

This past June, we celebrated National Indigenous History Month by honouring the heritage, contributions and cultures of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples in Canada, and amplifying the voices of Indigenous employees and donors connected to Canada’s Lifeline. Our celebrations took a somber tone, however, in the wake of the horrific discoveries of mass graves of Indigenous peoples at multiple sites of former residential schools in B.C. and Saskatchewan. This International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples (Monday, Aug. 9) is an opportunity for us to once again reflect on the history and lived realities of Indigenous peoples in Canada, including the devastating impact of residential schools. Employees who wish to learn more about the past (and ongoing trauma) experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada are invited to access the available resources on Indigenous history, allyship and inclusion on the DEI resources page on Connect. You can also read some of the inspiring stories of Indigenous women connected to Canada’s Lifeline at blood.ca/stories.

Question of the day: Will there be any changes to the current pandemic financial supports?

Early in the pandemic, Canadian Blood Services introduced several financial supports for employees: 

  • Pandemic top-up: which topped employee pay up to pre-pandemic levels
  • Quarantine leave: which maintains pay for employees who were required to quarantine
  • Pandemic sick leave: which provides 100 per cent paid leave for employees with COVID-related illnesses
  • Caregiver leave: which maintains pay for employees who are unable to perform some or all of their jobs due to COVID-related care for a family member

Although Pandemic top-up was discontinued when collections returned to pre-pandemic levels, the leaves have been maintained and, pursuant to the COVID maintenance period through the summer, will likely be maintained for the next several weeks. That said, we will be reviewing the COVID-related leaves in the early fall in consideration of several factors:

  • Vaccination rates
  • Case counts
  • School re-opening
  • A potential fourth wave

We will provide six weeks’ notice prior to any modification of the leaves. If you have any questions about the various pandemic support leaves, please contact your manager or reach out to your PCP Business Partner.

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About your digest

This digest highlights the latest policy and employee support measures, resources to help you manage our new reality and original content like articles and videos to remind us that what we do matters.  No access to email? No problem — all this information and more can be found on blood.ca/employees from any device, no login required.     

Click here to read past editions of your digest. 

Have questions? Check out blood.ca/employees or email us at communications@blood.ca