Employee Perks: How SilverRail Goes the Extra Mile

The pandemic-induced shift in employer responsibilities presents an unprecedented opportunity for businesses to tear up the rulebook, listen to the wants and needs of their people, and embrace forward-thinking perks that put employees at the centre of the conversation.

Here at SilverRail, we’re extremely proud of our bold approach to employee perks and the proactive steps we’re taking to foster a progressive company culture that puts smiles on people’s faces and springs in their steps.

Why Work At SilverRail?

SilverRail is on a mission to change the way people move through innovative products that make rail easy.

Not only does hopping aboard the SilverRail train present a host of exciting career prospects, but it’s also a rare opportunity for purpose-driven individuals to channel their talent towards a powerful mission that will make the world a better place. We’re passionate about the planet and confident in our ability to shape the future of green mobility through groundbreaking software innovation that creates unrivalled passenger experiences.

SilverRail is committed to building a culture that rewards its employees for their talent, celebrates their interests outside of work, provides emotional support when life gets them down, and dares to go against the status quo to build a more equitable workplace.

So without further ado, let’s take a look at some of the perks of becoming a SilverRailer and explore how we’re reshaping the future of work to put employees at the centre of the conversation.

We believe wellbeing comes first, period.

At SilverRail, the wellbeing of our employees is our bottom line. While many companies view wellbeing perks as a ‘nice-to-have’ add-on, we believe the happiness and health of our employees are linchpins to success and an integral driver towards long-term growth.

Whether it’s taking some time out of a busy workday to enjoy a team yoga session or decompressing from an important meeting with a guided meditation, we see it as our duty to provide employees with a choice of wellbeing opportunities and to give them the space they need to balance the pressures of working life. Outside of the office, we also offer employees a free subscription to the Calm app to help with improving sleep quality, reducing stress, sharpening focus and even developing self-improvement techniques for their personal lives.

While these initiatives go a long way to support our team, we appreciate that sometimes, life can get you down and it can feel like you’re paddling against the current. Our Mental Health days are there for this very reason. If an employee ever finds themselves in a difficult place, sometimes the best thing an employee can do is to step back and give them the space they need to regroup.

Our wellbeing policy also includes comprehensive health and dental insurance to keep your pearly whites squeaky clean and your physical health in ship shape.

The mental and physical health of our employees is our absolute priority — it’s as simple as that. SilverRail is proud to foster an open, honest, and supportive culture that puts mental health at the centre of the conversation. Our company mindset provides a safe space for employees to vocalise any issues, ask for help, and support their colleagues through life’s ups and downs.

We actually care about the environment.

At the risk of antagonising the majority of the world’s employers, many HR departments are guilty of greenwashing their employment policies and using the environment as a half-hearted attempt to align with climate-conscious candidates.

At SilverRail, however, when we say we care about the environment, we mean it.

From company-wide carbon offsetting programmes to our ongoing work with Trace to become officially climate positive, SilverRail’s green agenda seeps deep into its core DNA. Our position in the transport sector is highly motivated by our mission to decarbonise the future of mobility and develop groundbreaking technologies that make rail and other green forms of ground transportation easy.

What’s more, SilverRail is also proud to be a Climate Perks accredited employer — providing team members with additional annual leave if they choose to travel on vacation by train instead of flying. Paid ‘journey days’ empower SilverRailers to live their values and choose a low-carbon lifestyle without compromising on their number of days in the sun!

Check out this video of our Technical Product Manager, Sarah Disborough, taking advantage of our Climate Perks programme with a picturesque train journey through the English countryside before rolling into sunny Devon to recharge her batteries.

We invest in your personal enrichment.

Becoming a SilverRailer is much more than simply becoming an employee — it’s an opportunity to further your personal development, take on new challenges, and push yourself in entirely new directions. In our recruitment process, we look for individuals who are eager to learn and hungry to try new things. Shaping the future of global mobility requires a certain curiosity about the world and a determination to find positive ways to leave your mark.

It’s this eye for determined and visionary thinkers that drives us to provide all SilverRail employees with a host of enrichment opportunities that challenge our people to be the best versions of themselves. From world-leading learning and development opportunities to globe-trotting travel experiences and eye-opening seminars from industry pioneers, we’re committed to taking our employees on a whirlwind journey to discover their passions and explore new horizons.

Specifically, our partnership with Matchable connects SilverRailers with innovative volunteering opportunities that we facilitate via our Paid Volunteer Leave policy. We believe seeing the world through the eyes of others and taking time to understand their challenges is a vital first step towards building a fairer and more united world.

We stand for diversity and equality.

As a global company, we strive to build diverse teams that are welcoming to a rich mix of cultures, races, religions, ages, genders, sexual orientations, neurodivergent individuals, and people with health conditions or impairments.

We believe in equal opportunities for all and go above and beyond to hone both a hiring process that welcomes diversity and an internal culture that battles against deep-rooted social injustices. While it’s easy for an organisation to make noble claims about their quest for equality, we’re focused on implementing policies that make a real difference and showing results that present hope for underserved groups.

For example, 35.3% of SilverRail employees are female and 64.7% are male — although it might not sound like progress, the average ratio of women to men in the tech sector is 19% female and 81% men. We’re passionate about changing this statistic and are proud to be leading the way.

Similarly, a recent training session on neurodiversity that explored how the SilverRail team can best support neurodivergent individuals is an example of how we’re working to build a more inclusive and empathetic organisation that celebrates different perspectives, experiences and strengths.

We dare to be different with our WFH & Leave Policies.

While many businesses are guilty of shaping their work from home and leave policies around the status quo, SilverRail always endeavours to be one, two or even three steps ahead of the competition.

The traditional workplace suffers from decades of fatigue and outdated policies that simply aren’t fit for the modern era. At SilverRail, however, we’re committed to paving a new path by listening to our people and adopting fresh policies that enhance their quality of life and provide a solid support system that has their back.

So, let’s take a look at just some of our policies that are helping to shape the future of work:

Remote & Flexible Working

It won’t come as much of a surprise to hear that SilverRail has embraced the work from home movement with open arms in the wake of Covid. While this isn’t a particularly stand-out perk in today’s climate, SilverRail’s global presence across three continents lends itself perfectly to remote teams and we’re extremely excited about the opportunity to embrace remote positions going forward — global pandemic or not.

Menopause & Menstruation Leave

SilverRail is home to some of the most visionary women in the global tech and transport space. We’re extremely proud of our female champions and have made it an absolute necessity to adopt forward-thinking employment policies that identify and act upon long-overdue injustices in the workplace.

Our menopause and menstruation policies are designed by women, for women. We passionately believe in the importance of listening to the human body and providing employees with the time they need to approach their work in harmony with life’s natural cycles.

We recently had the pleasure of inviting guest speakers from the Perimenopause Hub to deliver a webinar that focused on the menopause — offering hands-on support to SilverRailers who may be fighting daily fatigue, imposter syndrome and other symptoms life can through at you during this time.

Enhanced Parental Leave

Bringing another human into the world is a big deal. At SilverRail, we’re committed to supporting our employees during this exciting time and take pleasure in offering extended parental leave that supersedes state requirements.

Pregnancy Loss, Fertility & Adoption Leave

Starting a family is an incredibly precious moment in anyone’s life. We understand there can be some extremely difficult moments along the way and have created a pioneering set of leave policies to lighten the load and give our employees the space they need to process major life events.

Competitive Annual Leave Entitlement

While many other employers don’t like to admit it, there is a world outside of the workplace. We understand the importance of letting your hair down and taking time to recharge your batteries in order to strike a healthy work-life balance.

Our generous annual leave entitlement is our way of saying thank you to our team for all of their hard work. No matter how busy things get or what deadlines are on the horizon, we always encourage our employees to take full advantage of their holiday entitlement and enjoy some much needed TLC.

Sabbaticals

Now more than ever, many people feel a compulsion to take a step back from their careers to channel their time and energy into other areas of life.

Whether it’s spending more time with family or grabbing a backpack to travel the world, SilverRail is open to sabbatical opportunities to give employees the opportunity to press pause before continuing their career growth. Taking time to explore new ideas, experience new things, and rethink the way we live is a vital part of an individual’s personal growth that we actively encourage.

Want to help us change the way people move?

We’re always looking for talented people who share our vision for the future of travel. We’re also a remote and flexible employer.

See our open roles and applyhere.