Cameco Corporation has long been one of Canada's most watched publicly traded companies.

With growing annual revenue and a place among the 60 companies that make up the S&P TSX stock index, Cameco's operations and financial performance receive frequent business media coverage.

This October, based on its first-ever application, Cameco was recognized on three media lists as a top Canadian employer.

In early October, Cameco was one of five Saskatchewan-based employers to be included on the Maclean's/Globe and Mail 2010 Top 100 Employers in Canada list. This is an annual competition run by Mediacorp which screened 2,600 applications to come up with the Top 100.

In Saskatoon, where the company is headquartered, employees have long spread the word among their friends and neighbours that Cameco is a great place to work. That was one of the themes that came to mind for president and CEO Jerry Grandey.

"Clearly within our local business communities, Cameco has always been seen as a good employer and this is validation of that, not just within our immediate communities, but countrywide," he said.

Later in October, it was announced that Cameco had been recognized in two specialty categories derived from the same Mediacorp application process.

Besides also being one of the Saskatchewan's Top 20 employers, Cameco was picked for special recognition by being named to the Financial Post's 10 Best Companies list. This recognizes "fast-growing companies in Canada that offer tremendous opportunities together with leading-edge employee perks and benefits."

Kaylynn Schroeder, Cameco's vice-president of human resources, says this national recognition will be a competitive advantage in recruitment, especially when talking to prospective employees from larger cities who prefer to work at companies with a global reach.

"Cameco is a global organization with assets all over the world," she said. "So, our employees may work on projects based in Canada, United States, Australia and Kazakhstan."

There are many reasons Schroeder thinks Cameco's Top 100 application stood out, but one is the leadership development program within the company.

"We've taken a lot of time and effort to create a leadership program specific to Cameco," she said. "That has also given opportunities to people and has allowed us to develop people in a way to meet our business needs."

As a company that has continued to grow its revenue and earnings, Schroeder says Cameco's ability to offer comprehensive benefits – life insurance, disability and pensions – helps provide the financial security that most people seek in their jobs.

"The company has done well financially, which has allowed us to develop Total Rewards programs that are robust and not every company has that," she said.

Total Rewards describes the short and long-term incentive programs that recognize both individual and team performance in helping the company meet financial and operation goals.

While a global company, Cameco has made special efforts in its home territory in Canada. There is a company mandate to continually increase the quantity and quality of jobs for residents of Saskatchewan's north.

Schroeder says the company also has embedded its wellness programs into the corporation, including its northern minesites where employees rotate in on a seven-day work cycle.

"A lot of companies have wellness programs, but ours is very active and embedded at the minesites with wellness co-ordinators at each of the sites," she said. "We have activities that are planned every month so that's different than just saying you have a wellness program."

Everywhere Cameco operates in Canada and abroad, the company encourages community involvement and matches employee contributions to community giving. It doesn't matter whether this is in Saskatoon or the northern communities or Blind River and Port Hope in Ontario, Schroeder said.

Grandey says Cameco employees have reason to be proud that the company was recognized as a top employer, but he doubts it surprised many people inside or outside the organization that Cameco was selected in its first attempt.

That's because the underlying reasons for inclusion on the Top 100 list are not new, the company CEO points out.

"It's simply a validation of what we've done over the years in building Cameco and providing opportunities, plus a reflection of the way we treat one another."

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This is what the Financial Post editors saw as Cameco Corporation strengths in employee benefits and culture that put the company on the FP Top 10 Companies list for 2010

Cameco Corporation
Head office: Saskatoon
Full time employees: 2,761

• Mentoring programs, subsidies for professional designations, career planning services and skilled-trades training
• Phased-in retirement and fully-paid retiree health coverage (no age limit)
• Maternity leave top-up benefits to 100% of salary for six weeks