Vaisala strives to be the best in the field in all its endeavors. This holds true also with Vaisala’s employer image. We want to be acknowledged as a great company to work for. Our employees seem to think we are, as our average retention time is just shy of a decade. This kind of long-term commitment has provided us with extremely competent staff that is dedicated to develop superior technology and long-term customer relationships. Furthermore, we balance this enduring know-how by engaging students, graduates, research partners and other technical experts in Vaisala projects. Consequently, we get new and innovative ideas also from our collaborators, which are then further developed together with our research & development team.

Safety at work

Vaisala is responsible for the health and safety of its staff. We believe that all accidents are avoidable if necessary precautions have been made. Vaisala has trained health and safety supervisors in all its production and service facilities and strictly follows local regulations on health and safety issues. Furthermore, all supervisors are trained in Health & Safety legislation and responsibilities. A health and safety committee convenes every quarter at the Vantaa site. This committee is formed by nine representatives altogether; five workers, three clerical staff representatives and one employer representative. The committee’s responsibilities include monitoring and developing the work environment in order to minimize the risk for work related accidents and illnesses.

Regular health & safety training is provided for all employees that require it in their work. Both employees and managers are required to pay close attention to identifying potential hazards in the workplace. Injury and accident statistics are prudently monitored and work at Vaisala is generally low-risk work. Activities that have a higher level of risk include work near live traffic, work on construction sites, railways or airports, working at height, working at night or in poor visibility, and working with ladders, drills, saws, solders and other tools. Risk assessments have been carried out for all working environments at Vaisala.

Injuries recorded in 2008 totaled 25 (24 in Finland, one in the U.S.). We define workplace injury as an incident after which an employee needs medical attention, whether or not it will result in sick leave. Most work related injuries sustained in the Vantaa office are strains, small wounds, bumps and bruises. About half of the injuries are recorded on trips either to or from work and are caused mostly by slips due to icy pathways in the winter. Vaisala Inc. reported one injury in 2008, with no lost days and with the employee returning to full duty. There were no work related fatalities in 2008.

Absenteeism varies somewhat between offices. Offices in Asia and Australia report the lowest absentee rates, less than one percent of scheduled working hours. The absentee rate in Finland was 3.1 % and between 1.7 – 2.0 % in the other European offices. Vaisala employs a paid time off (PTO) scheme in its North American offices and consequently does not monitor short time absence in the same manner as in other offices. There were no days lost to industrial action in 2008.

Vaisala recognizes the importance of preventive work for both accidents and illnesses. Therefore, the company promotes healthy and active lifestyles by subsidizing sports and exercise expenses for a multitude of Vaisala sports clubs, offering onsite fitness facilities, encouraging people to cycle to work, and supporting a Vaisala team in the yearly Dragon boat race in Helsinki. Vaisala discourages smoking and organizes events that raise awareness about healthy lifestyle.

Staff benefits

In line with our efforts to reach our employees’ full potential, we aim to foster a healthy and fair working environment. This also translates to fair and equal remuneration for staff, based on collective and individual contracts according to the demand level of each job as well as individual performance. Furthermore, all employees are included in a bonus scheme that promotes growth in sales and profits. All staff benefits are dependent on local regulations, but Vaisala does not differentiate between permanent and temporary staff when it comes to benefits. Staff benefits vary between offices and are dependent on local Vaisala practices.

We believe a constructive and motivating work environment is built up on more than fair remuneration. We provide our employees with numerous additional benefits that aim to maintain a healthy and motivated staff. To name a few, Vaisala pays for its employees’ health care and insures all members of staff, including for business travel and for sports in Vaisala’s sports clubs. At Vantaa, employees can also collect vouchers that pay for various forms of exercise in gyms and sports centers. Vaisala covers half of the vouchers’ cost. Employees have access to a gym at the Vantaa Head office and facilities with showers and lockers to encourage cycling to work. Lunches are subsidized at the staff restaurant and the company provides employees with free coffee. We also promote training and lifelong learning of our employees, by providing means of developing their competencies. This is achieved by offering reimbursements for higher education courses, such as bachelor’s or master’s degrees, language courses, competence development courses, or in-house training.

Employees’ health concerns are targeted by providing a part-time, onsite health care worker at Vantaa. Moreover, awareness campaigns e.g. against smoking, and staff training on health issues such as ergonomics in the workplace, are organized in most offices. Furthermore, Kela – The Finnish Social Insurance Institute, has recently enabled eligible Vaisala production staff to take part in the ASLAK rehabilitation program. The objective of this rehabilitation period is to secure and prolong health and working ability among employees who may have increased health consequences due to physical work. The program consists of four periods, each a week long organized by a professional rehabilitation centre.

In the United States, Vaisala provides a comprehensive benefits package for its U.S. based employees, including: medical, dental, travel, disability and life insurance programs, paid time off program, Tuition Reimbursement policy, Vaisala Fidelity 401(k) Plan, travel assistance, behavioral health assistance program, computer purchase plan and student scholarship gift program.