Alberta Living Wage reaches key milestone, certifies 100th employer
Acden, one of Canada’s largest community-owned Indigenous businesses certifies as the 100th Alberta Living Wage Network employer
When the Alberta Living Wage Network launched its certification program in November 2021, Ryan Lacanilao, the Network’s coordinator looked to other living wage networks when setting goals. “Based on other networks in Canada, we set our sights to 50 certified employers within the first year,” he recollects. The 50 employer milestone was reached in May 2022, not even a full year after the Network started to certify employers. Now a new milestone has been reached: Acden, one of Canada’s largest community-owned Indigenous businesses, has been certified as the 100th Alberta Living Wage Network employer. Acden is owned by the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN).
The Network is a collaboration of 18 communities across the province. It aims to reduce working poverty and increase the number of Albertans paid a living wage through the annual calculation of living wage rates, a certification program for employers who commit to paying a living wage, and advocating for policies that make life more affordable. The living wage rate calculations are community specific and take community, provincial, and federal programs into account. The data is released publicly, empowering Albertans with knowledge about the cost of living in different communities. The next release is scheduled for November 2023.
Acden started in 1994 with one truck and 10 employees performing waste management services on Syncrude sites. Since then it has grown exponentially and now includes 18 companies and over 1800 employees. Acden continues to operate on the same founding principle: to ensure a strong, sustainable future for ACFN and to achieve service excellence.
“Paying a living wage to our employees is more than just ‘doing the right thing,’ it’s also an essential step to promoting employee well-being, continued job satisfaction, and overall mental health. Acden strives to provide employment that supports skill building, confidence, and career development while maintaining economic and personal well-being. Overall, paying a living wage aligns with Acden’s corporate values, improves employee satisfaction and personal well-being, and positively impacts individuals and society as a whole,” says Natalie Castro Gentili, General Manager of Administrative Services for Acden.
Acden joins the network of 99 other certified employers across Alberta such as: Volunteer Lethbridge, Three Hive Consulting, The Dollar Detectives Society, GBV Resource Collective, MT Consulting Group, and Solar Alberta.
For more information about Acden, visit acden.com