Coming in at the No.10 spot in the Philippines Best Workplaces™ 2021 is Western Union Asia Regional Operations Center (AROC). As a global leader in cross-border and cross-currency money movement, Western Union AROC acted quickly to safeguard its 540 employees in the Philippines by creating a top ten list of empowering actions that were in line with their internal philosophy known as ‘The WU Way’.

Several projects were quickly undertaken to enable and motivate employees to work-from-home, including the uniquely named ‘Project Red Pill’ and ‘Project Blue Pill’ that delivered workstations to keep employees connected, along with full work-from-home (WFM) support that included internet and utility subsidies, discounted supplies, one-time support payments, extension of leave deadlines and additional leave days to those afflicted by Covid-19.

In addition to enhanced medical support such as flu vaccination for staff and their families, employees were also provided a free one-year subscription to Headspace for their mental wellbeing. Physical fitness was also highlighted through online workout sessions that were gamified with rewards to increase participation.

Diversity and Inclusion continued to be a priority with activities such as Pride Month, Women@WU SheCares wellness summit and others were virtually rolled out. Employees felt especially appreciated when birthday hampers were thoughtfully delivered to their homes and special Christmas baskets were sent to every single employee to complement their year-end party.

Throughout the pandemic, the voice of employees were hailed through monthly engagement surveys as well as through their dedicated social media platform – WULife. Leadership continued to play a hands-on role even with staff working from home by utilising multiple virtual channels, such as regular ‘Office Hours’ meeting sessions with the Site Leader and ‘Virtual Kamustahan’ (How are you?) sessions with the Senior Leadership Team and HR to ensure that employees are constantly connected and engaged with their leaders.

The company’s comprehensively caring approach throughout the year was treasured by their staff, with 94% of employees appreciating the good working environment provided through company facilities and 93% feeling pride at working for Western Union AROC.