Riopele strengthens its attractiveness

Riopele has once again been recognised by the Randstad Employer Brand Research, an independent survey of almost 163,000 participants and 6022 companies worldwide, which aims to "reflect the attractiveness of employers". Among the 150 largest employers in Portugal, Riopele was identified as the most attractive textile company to work for in Portugal.

The list also includes Gabor of Germany and Ecco of Denmark, two foreign companies operating in the footwear sector.

Cláudia Queirós, Human Resources Manager at Riopele, points out that "this is the second year in a row that Riopele has been recognised in the Randstad Employer Brand Research study, which aims to measure the attractiveness of companies to the working population”.

The study reflects the attractiveness of the 150 largest employers in Portugal, recognised by at least 10% of the population. It provides valuable information on the main market trends, including what professionals value most.

The main conclusions are that salary and benefits remain the most important item in the classification of the "ideal employer". In the current context of rising living costs due to the negative impact of inflation, this should be a priority for all employers. However, non-pecuniary benefits, work-life balance, a good working environment and career development opportunities are becoming increasingly important, so companies need to invest more in broadening the range of benefits on offer to attract new talent and motivate existing teams. It is also important to note that 87% of professionals expect their employers to provide some level of support for diversity and inclusion, as well as mental health and wellness benefits.

In the specific case of Riopele, "we have charted this course and, in 2023, we consolidated our strong commitment to training and development, with a training plan that exceeded 70,000 hours of training and resulted in strong investment in the development of skills related to technological/digital transformation, sustainability, management, leadership and health and wellbeing", recalls Cláudia Queirós.

Riopele's health initiatives "have also been diversified, focusing on the new occupational health team, a new monthly psychology service and a variety of health and wellness initiatives".

In terms of attracting talent, Riopele's Human Resources Manager notes that "2023 was a very positive year, with 60% more applications received than the previous year, which demonstrates Riopele's attractiveness and the identification of candidates with the company's values and policies". “It is no coincidence that one of Riopele's strategic pillars is its people,” points out Cláudia Queirós, "thus, we will continue to work on making our teams more motivated and involved in the company's results. Riopele will continue to focus on human resources development and new social responsibility strategies. We want to be a company with a healthy working environment," she concludes.

The job market

According to Randstad Employer Research, "salary and benefits remain the most important item for the ideal employee. However, they "rank only 10th in current employer ratings, suggesting there is room for improvement”. A similar difference is seen when it comes to work-life balance and career advancement opportunities. Intangible benefits are considered almost as important as tangible benefits, hence employers are advised to offer a comprehensive benefits package to attract new talent.

Furthermore, “about one-eighth of workers have changed jobs, while one-quarter intend to do that. Young people (up to the age of 34) have changed jobs more often and are more likely to do so. The main reason for leaving an employer is that pay is too low due to the rising cost of living, followed by work-life balance and lack of career advancement opportunities". Employers who underperform in these areas run the risk of losing talent, as people looking to change employers are even more concerned about these issues.

On the other hand, "more than four out of five professionals expect some form of support from their employer in terms of inclusion and/or mental health and wellness benefits. In addition, "one in five professionals goes so far as to say that they would rather be unemployed than work for an employer who does not share their personal values. The importance of these issues is growing among young professionals. Therefore, employers should prepare policies and programmes as they can expect these issues to grow in importance in the coming years”.