Employees: O2 Ireland
- Investing in people
- Engaging with employees
- Future workplace
- Work-life balance
- Disabilities and disadvantage
Investing in people
In 2005, we spent over €2.5 million on employee training.
We have a 'core skills' learning curriculum, offering over 20 programmes. We also run leadership development, coaching and mentoring programmes.
- Overall best company to work for in Ireland, 2006 (Best Companies Awards - Great Place to Work® Institute).
- Named in the top ten companies to work for in Europe (Best Companies in Europe 2006).
- Best company to work for with over 1,000 employees for the second year running.
O2 employees celebrate the opening of our new Corporate Headquarters
Engaging with employees
We engage our employees in shaping the business through a variety of media:
- An online anonymous employee forum ('Think Tank').
- 'Weekly Slice' business updates and monthly 'Team Briefs'.
- Online company-wide employee opinion surveys.
- Open Forum quarterly communication staff updates with the Chief Executive Officer, O2 Ireland.
- Intraview video streaming to all desktops.
- Award-winning RAP Magazine – a monthly newsletter for all staff.
Future workplace
We want to create a 'workplace of the future' that respects diversity and disability in the workplace and that recognises people's changing social needs.
Childcare responsibilities and increased commuting time particularly concern our employees. We believe that by offering flexibility and choice in the workplace we are more likely to find and keep the best talent.
Work-life balance
We try to provide our employees with a good work-life balance.
Initiatives include: flexible working such as flexi-time, part-time and remote working; the Perfect Balance scheme, including massage sessions, acupuncture, yoga and health checks; parenting-with-confidence courses and a Carers’ Network to support those who have significant caring responsibilities at home.
Disabilities and disadvantage
We sponsor the O2 Ability Awards, encouraging Irish employers to see the benefits of employing people with different abilities.
We have partnered with disability management consultants Access Ability to provide disability-awareness training for managers and guidance on recruiting and retaining people with disabilities. We are seeking to identify a number of job opportunities for suitable candidates.
Our new Dublin office was certified as fully accessible during the year. There is a motorised lift to take wheelchair users to the front door. All workstations and reception desks are ergonomically suited to those with a disability. Light switches and door handles have been positioned to suit wheelchair users.
In November 2005, O2 won a President's award from Chambers Ireland for our sponsorship of the O2 Ability Awards.
Issues in brief
O2 plc
- New owner, new era
- Better-place-to-work dialogue
- Differentiation through our people
- Working for wellbeing
- On reflection
- Safe place to work
- Good behaviour
- Balancing our make-up
- Opportunity and high performance
- Valuing variety and difference
- Help for life's strains
- Diversity mirrors society
- Opportunities for all
