Increasingly, employers in Rwanda like elsewhere are reconsidering and adjusting approaches to improve their employees’ welfare for improved talent attraction and retention.

A recent PWC report on reshaping the workplace noted that as the portion of millennials in the workforce born between   1980 and 2000, key considerations in attracting talent in workplaces are fast changing. These are reflective of their career aspirations, attitudes about work, and knowledge of new technologies that will define the culture of the 21st century workplace.

This, Human Resource experts say has seen an adjustment of incentives going beyond traditional benefits such as annual benefits, health insurance and 30-day annual leave.

Among key ways Rwandan firms are adjusting their employees’ welfare include:

Personal development programmes

It is increasingly common to come across personal and self-development programmes within firms supported by employers that are not tailored to improve the company’s bottom line but rather the welfare of the staff.

These take different approaches including sports and fitness initiatives, travel groups, literacy clubs, savings associations, among others.

These employers say is a response to a demand by staff members to have a work-life balance, belong to a community and take part in causes they believe in.

Deborah Gasatura, a Human Resource officer at NCBA Bank in a recent interview said that such initiatives have advantages such as connecting for opportunities, support, inspiration and motivation as well as being part of a community does not only provide a sense of belonging but also is a source of great empowerment.

This also involves access to training opportunities to develop their capacities in different skillsets.

Paid Sabbatical

Last week, Julienne Oyler, the Chief Executive of African Entrepreneur Collective a regional organization based in Rwanda which works with emerging enterprises announced that they have launched a sabbatical programme where staff who have been working there for 5 years can take up to 3 months paid off.

The sabbatical can be used up by employees to rest, undertake a self-development programme, travel, try out investment or anything else.

The PWC study noted that millennials are often uncomfortable with rigid corporate structures and expect progression, flexibility and a work environment that allow them to make the most of their potential.

Remote working

The Covid-19 pandemic serves as proof that in a majority of sectors, employees do not have to be physically present in the work premises during working hours to be productive. With that, some organizations have adjusted their policies to allow staff to work remotely which gives employees more time for other preferred activities such as travel, family time as well as engagement in other income generation activities.

For instance, an employee of a local telco said that with the remote working, she has been able to move to a preferred neighbourhood which wasn’t possible previously as she previously wanted to shorten her commute to work.

With remote working, the metrics of staff evaluation have evolved to output based as opposed to traditional approaches such as time one physically shows up at work.

Mental health

Increasingly employers are realizing and admitting that there is a need to put in place mental health programmes as part of their employee assistance programme. This acknowledges that often, workplaces can be stressful, intense, high pressure which could affect personnel mental health.

Lina Higiro, the Chief Executive of NCBA Bank Rwanda in a recent interview said that this is based on a realization that if one doesn’t take care and feed their mind with the right environment and with the right people, the right thoughts, they could eventually breakdown.

Paternal and maternal leave

In previous years, it was not uncommon to come across professionals who walked away from their career to be parents especially when their kids are younger. As millennials seek to be more involved as parents, multiple employers have been increasing their maternity leave provisions. Under the current legal framework in Rwanda, a female employee is entitled to a paid maternity leave of 12 consecutive weeks or three months (including two weeks they may take before delivery). However, some local firms allow their employees up to five months of paid maternity leave.

A human resource officer at one such firm told The New Times that giving parents time off to take care of their new-borns and to spend quality time with their children does not only benefit the employee, but it is also great for the organization noting that it can boost morale and productivity as well staff retention.