Connecticut Caregivers Thankful To Be Employed At “Great Place to Work”

As thousands of Connecticut residents struggle with unemployment caused by the COVID 19 pandemic, the compassionate caregivers at Assisted Living Services, Inc. (ALS) are thankful to be employed and appreciated by an exemplary company. In fact, ALS has been honored as an outstanding national workplace by the Great Place to Work Institute, an independent research and consulting firm.

The certification process considered more than 1,000 employee surveys from across ALS’ locations in Cheshire, Fairfield and Clinton. The survey evaluated more than 60 elements of team members’ experience on the job. These included employee pride in the organization’s community impact, belief that their work makes a difference, and feeling their work has special meaning. Rankings are based on employee completion of the Trust Index© Survey that asked them to share their experiences.

Donna Reynolds of Wallingford has worked with ALS for 7 years as a Personal Care Assistant:

I like working for Assisted Living Services because it is a family owned agency that cares for their employees. What has kept me there is they recognize their caregivers and the work they do, and it gives me incentive to give my clients the best care I can.

Kristin Mercadante of Southbury has worked with ALS for 14 years in various roles but is now our Fairfield Branch Manager/Service Coordinator:

I have been working for this great company over 14 years with some of the most amazing colleagues. ALS is “A Great Place To Work” because you feel like family here. Throughout the years I have had many opportunities to grow with the company through constant training, mentoring and encouragement. There is a great sense of pride in working here not just for the services we provide to the senior community but also in how all staff are treated. I am so proud to work for this family run company.”

“We are grateful for our fantastic team that was instrumental in helping us to once again earn recognition for our positive culture,” says Mario D’Aquila, MBA and Chief Operating Officer of ALS. “The core of our mission is to provide exceptional care for clients, so naturally we care for our employees the same way. In addition to sharing their job satisfaction, the feedback they provided will also help us run our business more strategically.”

D’Aquila notes the family-owned homecare agency has garnered several high-profile awards this year, including earning a position on the highly coveted annual Inc. 5000 list for 2020, the most prestigious ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. Assisted Living Services was the only Connecticut company in the Health Industry category. Additionally, Home Care Pulse selected ALS as a recipient of three of their top awards: Provider of Choice, Employer of Choice and Leader in Excellence.

Employees highlighted the monthly Platinum Caregiver Award program launched by ALS in 2019. The unprecedented initiative awards $5,000 to a stellar caregiver who has exceeded expectations for quality care. However, during the coronavirus pandemic, the program was retooled as the Homecare Hero Award in order to recognize more outstanding employees. From February to May 2020, ALS awarded 20 caregivers with $1,000, along with a beautiful crystal statue and a certificate of merit.

For more than two decades, ALS has led the charge to raise the standards for quality of care across the board in the highly competitive homecare industry. The company gives tens of thousands of dollars each year to incentivize employees for superior performance or perfect attendance. Managers also receive incentives if quality assurance benchmarks are achieved. Incentives and genuine appreciation for staff members are just a few of the reasons that ALS has a high employee retention rate with some employees still working for the agency for nearly two decades.

ALS employs more than 400 caregivers across the state, all of whom are insured, bonded, and supervised. D’Aquila notes the company is actively hiring as the demand for at-home care continues to grow.

“We applaud Assisted Living Services for seeking certification and releasing its employees’ feedback,” said Dr. Jacquelyn Kung, of Great Place to Work’s senior care affiliate Activated Insights. “These ratings measure its capacity to earn its own employees’ trust and create a great workplace for high performance.”

About Assisted Living Services, Inc.

Since 1996, award-winning home care agency Assisted Living Services, Inc. in Cheshire with branch locations in Clinton and Fairfield has provided quality care to residents across Connecticut. Their award-winning CarePlus program blends personal care with technological safety and monitoring devices from sister company Assisted Living Technologies, Inc. Learn more by visiting www.assistedlivingct.com or calling 203.634.8668.

About Great Place to Work

Great Place to Work is the global authority on high-trust, high-performance workplace cultures. Through its certification programs, Great Place to Work recognizes outstanding workplace cultures and produces the annual Fortune "100 Best Companies to Work For®" and Great Place to Work Best Workplaces lists for Millennials, Women, Diversity, Small & Medium Companies, industries and, internationally, countries and regions. Through its culture consulting services, Great Place to Work helps clients create great workplaces that outpace peers on key business metrics like revenue growth, profitability, retention and stock performance. Learn more at Greatplacetowork.com.

Photo/Caption: Donna Reynolds of Wallingford works as a Personal Care Assistant at Assisted Living Services helping elderly clients with activities of daily living. She credits her 7-year career at the company to the amazing recognition and incentive programs offered by its management for exceptional client care. Credit: Assisted Living Services