Your Digest
Return to Office project to begin pilot phase in March
Since March 2020, we have all experienced changes in our work environments, including a large percentage of employees who have been required to work from home. Now, we are ready to begin a phased plan for remote workers to rejoin their colleagues on-site, through the Return to Office initiative. While COVID-19 has not disappeared, this is an important step towards adjusting to a new way of working. A transition plan will be piloted at the Lancaster site in Ottawa during March. The project team will then assess feedback and make any necessary adjustments to the process. The goal is to begin introducing Return to Office plans to remaining sites in April, with the majority of sites on board by the end of May. Read more details about the process on Connect or visit the Return to Office page on the employee portal.
Submit your questions for next week’s live town hall
Our next live town hall event is coming up on Thursday, March 10 at 1 p.m. ET. Please submit any questions you have in advance to communications@blood.ca with the subject line “TOWNHALL” or record an audio question by phoning 1-800-509-3329. If you prefer to submit written questions anonymously, use this form (indicate “TOWNHALL” in the subject line). On March 10, click the meeting link in your Outlook invitation to join live. If you’re unable to make it, a recording of the event will be available on the employee portal within 24 hours.
New diversity, equity and inclusion learning series starts next week
As part of our important work to further build an institutional culture of inclusive excellence at Canadian Blood Services, the DEI department is launching a new internal learning series, Advancing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. The series will kick off on March 7 (12–1 p.m. ET) with Anti-Black racism and Black mental health. This session will explore the concepts of anti-Black racism, how anti-Black racism manifests in society and health systems and the impacts of institutional racism on Black mental health. Dr. Marty Lampkin, a clinical social worker, educational consultant and professor at George Brown College will lead this in-depth discussion. Register here and visit Connect to learn more.
Coming up later in March, new sessions will include: Fostering trans inclusion in the workplace on March 30 and Building trust with racialized communities to diversify our donor and registrant base on March 31. Visit connect.blood.ca/DEI to register for and learn more about these upcoming learning opportunities.
In case you missed the Feb. 22 session Recognizing and addressing racial microaggressions, facilitated by Dr. Yasmin Razack, you can watch it here.
Blood drive and fundraiser honour young man
Less than a week after entering a hospital emergency room in crisis in the summer of 2020, Ben Becker passed away from the effects of leukemia — a diagnosis he’d received just days earlier. During his short but fatal illness, he received blood transfusions and now his family is looking for “human angels” to help others and to honour Ben’s caring spirit and compassion for others. This month, two days before what would have been Ben’s 29th birthday, his parents and brother are organizing community donation events. They are asking for both blood and financial gifts to ensure blood products are there for patients when they need them most. Read Ben’s story on blood.ca/stories.
Question of the day: With over 70 per cent of our workforce self-identifying as women (as per the 2020 Feminuity findings report), what are we doing to celebrate and recognize International Women’s Day on March 8?
Whether deliberate or unconscious, bias can make it difficult for women to move ahead in the workplace and other spaces. To recognize and celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD) this year, the Office of the Chief Diversity Officer will be hosting a special live panel event on Tuesday, March 8 (12–1 p.m. ET).
In honour of IWD’s 2022 theme, Break the Bias, the panel will feature inspiring women from across our organization, who will share their experiences and career journeys and discuss what we can do collectively as an organization to advance gender equality for all.
Together, we can break the gender bias in our communities and our workplace.
Click the meeting link in your Outlook invite to join live on Tuesday. If you can’t make it, the event recording will be made available through Your Digest, Connect, and the Connect on the Go app.
About Your Digest
This digest highlights the latest policy and employee support measures, resources to help you manage our new reality and original content to remind us that what we do matters. This information 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.