team member compensation

Our vision is “right people – right rewards.” Compensation is a major tool for attracting and retaining the best talent, as described in the retention section. For management and professional team members, TELUS positions total targeted compensation at or above the 75th percentile for high performers, including both base salary and variable compensation. In 2006, most regular team members received at-risk variable pay based on performance metrics.

To ensure our compensation remains competitive, we review compensation levels annually and on an as-needed basis.

Recognizing, rewarding and sharing success

Base salary is supplemented with variable pay in support of our pay-for-performance culture, through which we all share the risks and rewards of running our business. Variable pay is paid out semi-annually, with the amount of the payout dependent on achieving threshold, target and stretch objectives at the corporate, business unit and individual level. Performance is measured by balanced scorecards and personal performance objectives.

Management compensation at TELUS is customized to the individual. Compensation is determined through the four components of our performance management process – achieving objectives, living the TELUS values, value to strategy and retention risk. Individuals are rated on these components; the higher the rating, the greater the potential for both increases to variable pay and adjustments to base and variable percentage targets.

Variable pay is also available to most team members governed by a collective agreement. This is in addition to their base compensation and is tied to achievement of organizational objectives.

In addition, to foster continuing growth, long-term incentives such as stock options and restricted stock units, are allocated to high-performing team members.

TELUS employee share plan

TELUS offers team members the opportunity to participate in an employee share plan, through which they can purchase TELUS shares through regular payroll deductions. Team member contributions, up to six per cent of their salary, are matched by the company up to 45 per cent, directly supporting a business ownership culture and mindset. With ownership of 6.5 million shares, or 1.94 per cent of the total outstanding shares, TELUS team members are our 10th largest shareholder group.

Benefits program

Our benefits program is an important part of the total rewards package at TELUS. The program is designed to encourage and support health, wellness and balance. It provides protection for health, life and disability to offer peace of mind and sufficient choice to enable flexibility and promote satisfaction.

TELUS offers team members a flexible benefits plan, which allows them to tailor benefits to suit individual needs. The flexible plan was introduced to unionized team members in January 2006, giving them choice in their benefit coverage for the first time.

Additional information on benefits for management and professional team members can be found at telus.com/careers.

Corporate recognition – programs and tools

By recognizing individuals who have exceeded the expectations of their job and achieved positive results for TELUS, we improve performance, increase motivation, retain top performers and encourage behaviours aligned with our values and business objectives. This ultimately drives TELUS' profitability, shareholder value, customer satisfaction and customer loyalty.

At TELUS, we believe that a recognition culture drives high performance. We strive to consistently provide meaningful formal and informal recognition. It is this commitment that creates excitement about the accomplishments of our team, supports our TELUS values and aligns with our strategic intent.

Team Machine – Team Machine is our corporate recognition system. In 2006, there was a downward trend in corporate Team Machine spend due to business units focusing on more specific, personalized recognition for their team members. Unfortunately this spend is not tracked. Feedback from TELUS team members and recent Team Machine focus groups held across the organization confirmed the trend to a more individualized form of recognition and identified the opportunity to refresh the system. In response, the HR Performance Culture team is currently in the process of re-branding and re-launching a new corporate recognition program.