At Ericsson we are committed to acting as a responsible member of global society and contributing to the communities in which we operate. These contributions take many forms, such as social and humanitarian aid, scholarships and other educational support, the environment and children's welfare. For this reason Ericsson has chosen to support several initiatives that have a genuine link to making Canada a better place to live.
We also encourage and empower our employees to make a positive contribution to society and the communities where we work and live. Ericsson provides support, such as matching employee monetary contributions and providing paid time off to perform community activities.
Ericsson Response
Ericsson Canada maintains an active role in our global disaster program, Ericsson Response. Emergency telecommunications equipment and a fully trained emergency response team is located at our R&D and Services Centre in Montreal ready to be deployed anywhere in the world. Although the majority of disaster responses have been in other parts of the world, Ericsson has responded to several disasters in Canada including the Swissair Flight 111 disaster at Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia and the Red River flood in Manitoba.
Trillium Health Centre
In 2005, Ericsson Canada announced a five-year, $500,000 donation towards Trillium Health Centre's state-of-the-art Learning Centre, to enhance the training needs of its highly skilled workforce through the use of leading-edge technology. This donation will help to improve the quality of healthcare in our shared community and helps one of Canada's leading community hospitals to deliver life-long learning opportunities.
Children's Aid Foundation
Education and training is the cornerstone of building a better society and as part of our commitment to this important cause, Ericsson supports the Children's Aid Foundation through three programs. The Tutoring Fund seeks to meet the needs of high-risk children and youth by making sure they graduate high school and are able to meet the academic expectations for their age and grade levels. The Technology Fund provides hardware, software and Internet access to children and youth served by the Children's Aid Society. We have also established a $5,000 Ericsson Scholarship, which helps young people who have grown up in foster care and have beaten the odds by continuing on to a post secondary education.
SupportLink
Ericsson, Rogers Wireless and the Government of Ontario joined forces in 1997 to launch SupportLink; a program which provides cell phones - pre-programmed to dial 911 in an emergency - to individuals at high risk of abuse. Ericsson provides mobile phones and Rogers Wireless donates the airtime to support this worthy cause. Social Services in the Attorney General’s office are responsible for operating the program and making sure the most in-need individuals receive phones.
All Charities Approach for Employee Contributions
Ericsson has adopted an "All Charities" approach to our Employee Donation Matching Program. This means that all registered charities (religious and political organizations excluded) are eligible for consideration. Ericsson employees may donate to their charity of choice and Ericsson will match their donations $1 for $1. In addition to the employee donation-matching program there is also community service leave and community service grants, which employees can use towards causes that are important to them.
