October 22, 2020
Kim Armstrong, Deputy City Manager of Employee Services, released the City’s 2020 Employee Experience survey results, which was completed by 5,495 employees. This biennial survey provided employees with an opportunity to provide feedback related to inclusion, diversity, respect and overall experience working at the City of Edmonton.
“The City of Edmonton is committed to receiving honest and truthful feedback from our employees,” said Kim Armstrong. “In the midst of a global pandemic, significant financial challenges facing the City and an unstable provincial economy, it was even more important to us to gather feedback from our employees.”
In reviewing the corporate-wide results some of the important findings included:
- Employees are feeling uneasy as a result of discussions around temporary layoffs service level changes and workforce reductions.
- Employees are hesitant to act when experiencing concerning behaviour or discrimination.
- Employees are feeling disconnected due to the pandemic.
“Some of these results are understandable and expected as we continue to adapt and respond as an organization to COVID-19,” said Armstrong. “In response we will be taking a number of corporate actions that focus on these areas.”
The corporate actions include:
- Providing clarity to employees through regular email updates and webinars.
- Building trust to encourage employees to take action when they experience concerning behaviour and discrimination in the workplace.
- Enhancing belonging by creating more opportunities for connection and engagement among employees.
“As an organization, this survey data is incredibly valuable in helping us create and sustain a positive employee experience,” explained Armstrong. “It gives us the opportunity to listen and learn from employee’s unique perspectives and then lead by taking action based on the feedback we receive.”
