Leuven business gives employees who bike to work an extra day’s holiday
Employees at the Leuven-based accounting firm SBB who came to work by bike today will get an extra day’s holiday. The company is taking the initiative in response to the #ikfietsnaarhetwork-dag or the #Imcyclingtowork-Day. 25 employees accepted the challenge and cycled to work together this morning in the company of cycling commentator and former cycling champion José De Cauwer.
All arrived around 9 a.m. this morning. "That extra day of vacation was of course a nice motivation," say Tom and Nicky, who rode together from Scherpenheuvel-Zichem to Leuven, a ride of about 28 km. "But above all it was great fun to do this together with our colleagues."
Nathalie too agrees it’s great to do this as a group. "That day off is of course nice, but I especially liked the fact that everyone made the effort to come by bike." Sarah also cycled to work and supported her colleagues who arrived a little later. "I gave them a cheer. We all work very hard and this is a fun way to reward ourselves for our commitment to the company," she said.
Also on hand to motivate the participants was VRT's cycling commentator José De Cauwer. He rode along from Heist-op-den-Berg to Leuven. "Chilly but beautiful. Perfect to make sure you arrive at work awake," José summed up the morning. "I remember a time when it was normal practice to go to work by bike. Now that's not that common anymore. I think this is a great initiative."
War for Talent
SBB is not doing this lightly. The company wants to show that it cares about the well-being of its employees. That should convince young talent to come to work for the company, because in this sector, too, companies are competing to get hold of the best workers. "The 'War for Talent' is also raging in our sector. It is difficult to find people," says CEO Raf Dom. "As an employer, we want to show what we value mental and physical well-being."
"This extra day’s holiday may be easily earned, but we want to make the gesture. A healthy mind in a healthy body, that also applies to our workforce. Our job is a top sport. We are definitely going to take further action to promote cycling, but we won’t keep on giving days of holiday away. The business has to keep running too!"