Introduction
The best employers give back to their community
2025 Winners
Meet the 2025 winners of the Waterloo Area's Top Employers competition. Click on any employer name below to discover our editors' detailed Reasons for Selection.
Employees at Sleeman Breweries inspect the case packer at the company’s facility in Guelph (Photo: L.Palmer).
Introduction
The best employers give back to their community
Is kindness contagious? Or maybe giving back just comes naturally to Waterloo Area's Top Employers (2025), a region that includes Kitchener, Guelph, and Cambridge. Over 90 per cent of this year's winners, offer formal programs that allow their workers to get involved in supporting the local community -- a unique statistic that sets a higher bar for others.
For instance, ULMA Construction Systems Canada Inc. in Cambridge actively encourages employees to support the community with five paid days off per year to volunteer. Likewise, Sleeman Breweries Ltd. in Guelph maintains a strong community connection, matching employees' contributions dollar for dollar for many of its fundraising efforts, including the United Way and disaster relief efforts with the Canadian Red Cross.
Sleeman's vice-president of human resources, Martin Durocher, says the company is revamping its volunteerism policy in 2025 to make it more accommodating of employees' different work schedules and to create incentives encouraging employees to give back.
"Our employees are a very generous and involved group," says Durocher. "Knowing that we'll match their contributions shows we appreciate and value them -- and that we care about the causes that matter to them too."
This community-focused approach aligns especially well with younger workers, like millennials and Gen Z, who expect organizations to demonstrate a commitment to social responsibility and work-life balance. Notably, many of the Waterloo Area's Top Employers (2025) have enhanced their family-friendly benefits, including coverage for mental health care, fertility treatments and more inclusive parental leave top-up.
"We were intentional in our policy language so that, no matter what your family looks like, if you're welcoming a new child as either the primary or the secondary caregiver, you can take time away from work," says Durocher.
"Secondary caregivers receive 100 per cent of their salary for up to six weeks. Our employees tell us this time away is very valuable in bonding with their kids and supporting their partners."
While generous time-off policies are the norm, some Waterloo companies, such as Arctic Wolf Networks Canada Inc. and eSentire Inc., go even further by offering unlimited paid vacation, allowing employees to take whatever time they need.
Combined with their strong emphasis on community engagement, it's clear that Waterloo's highly progressive employers understand what it takes to attract and retain top talent. It's worth taking a look.
– Diane Jermyn
This article is from the official announcement magazine for Waterloo Area's Top Employers (2025), published online in the Waterloo Region Record on January 14, 2025, and on Eluta.ca.
Methodology
Any employer with its head office or principal place of business in the Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge area may apply for Waterloo's Top Employers. With a 6.15 per cent growth rate, the region is Canada's fastest developing community. The region welcomed nearly 40,000 new residents in the past year, motivating employers to up their game to attract and retain top talent.
To determine competition winners, employers are compared to organizations in similar industries and of similar size. Employers are evaluated on eight selection criteria, which are: (1) Workplace; (2) Work Atmosphere & Social; (3) Health, Financial & Family Benefits; (4) Vacation & Time Off; (5) Employee Communications; (6) Performance Management; (7) Training & Skills Development; and (8) Community Involvement.
While the underlying criteria have remained consistent since the project's inception, areas of review have expanded and evolved with the advent of new programs and policies. Examples include workplace safety, hybrid and remote work options, and health and wellness.
Now in its 18th year, the competition is a catalogue of best practices, representing some of the most progressive and forward-thinking employers in the region.
– Sonja Verpoort
This article is from the official announcement magazine for Waterloo Area's Top Employers (2025), published online in the Waterloo Region Record on January 14, 2025, and on Eluta.ca.
Waterloo Regional Police Service values the well-being of its employees and provides them with generous mental health coverage.
Apply
If you are an exceptional employer with progressive HR programs and policies, consider applying for next year's edition of Waterloo Area's Top Employers. Now entering its 19th year, our project is the nation's longest-running editorial competition. Applications for 2026 open in February. Join our mailing list for more info.
