Did you know that at Height Works we are a Canadian, locally owned business?
That’s right we are.
We recognize that being a business owner can have its perks – but it also has its fair share of challenges.
During the last twelve years serving customers fall protection needs throughout Canada, we’ve certainly experienced our fair share of challenges. Our business has survived not one but two economic downturns, a global pandemic that disrupted what we all thought we knew about life, family, jobs, finances, mental, physical and emotional health, we’ve had challenges discovering and hiring qualified and passionate staff, finding extended health care plans for small businesses and their employees, and finding partners that care as much about our customer projects, budgets and timelines as we do.
And sure, there are some perks (mixed in with the challenges) of being a locally owned business - our biggest perk is that our entire team is made up of passionate people! Backed by their amazing families - and their token fur babies!
We all work hard at Height Works – but try to remember to play hard too! (it’s not just a motto here but the way we try to exist.) We plan annual team building activities - and invite the spouses to join in the fun sometimes too. We try to ensure that our team have flexible work schedules when they need it, or time off for vacations or simply to meet personal and family needs. The perks also allow us to balance that work hard – play hard mentality to show up and volunteer at our kids’ schools, volunteer or donate in the community, and support other locally owned businesses through purchase decisions and some of the other business relationships we choose to form.
So, while we try to keep the perks aligned with the challenges, we know that we wouldn’t change a single minute of the collective experiences that has gone into making the last twelve years a reality over here at Height Works.
Every day, many small business owners worry over the impact too little or too much work will have on their teams, the business finances and manageable future growth.
Why? Because they are passionate about what they do!
Layer in today’s increasing costs for everyone: whether renting a home or a commercial space, increasing food and gas prices at the pumps, interest rates, rents for commercial and/or industrial spaces, and even higher costs to consider when purchasing a home or business space.
Here’s some FUN FACTS you might not know about small businesses in Canada:
- Small businesses employee the majority of Canadians. Yup you heard that right! No joke.
- The Government of Canada’s Key Small Business Statistics 2023 defined small businesses with 1-99 paid employees. (medium with 100-499, large businesses with 500+)
- As of December 2022 there were 1.22 million employee businesses in Canada. Of these 1.19 million or 97.8% were small business.
- As of 2022 small businesses employed 5.7 million people in Canada or 46.8% of the total private labor force. That’s an impressive number for small businesses in Canada.
- In Alberta small businesses make up 153,938 of total number of employer businesses (medium 2,980, large 366).
As Height Works is considered a small business, we like to support other locally owned businesses whenever we can – from where we host events, to who we buy from to say thanks, or the types of charities we donate.
Remember when you spend with a small business, that’s money that continues to circulate in your local economy and community. It employs your neighbor and sends your neighbor’s kiddos to ballet classes and summer camps.
And oh yeah! If you need new fall protection personal protective equipment, inspection and testing services, or engineered fall protection systems don’t forget about the FallPro experts here at Height Works! 😉