How we work at Skerry Maps
Everything a new starter asks in their first month, in one place. It takes about five minutes to read. If the answer you need isn't here, ask Nadia, and she'll add it.
The short version
- Core hours
- 10:00 to 3:00Monday to Thursday
- Office days
- Tuesday and ThursdayThe rest is your choice
- Vacation
- 22 days a yearPlus the winter closure
- Payday
- The 25thEvery month
- Expenses under $75
- Just buy itClaim by the 5th
- Stuck?
- Ask NadiaShe'll know who knows
Hours and where we work
A full week is 37.5 hours. You choose when, around two fixed points.
- Core hours are 10:00 to 3:00, Monday to Thursday. Be reachable then, at the office or at home. Meetings only happen inside core hours.
- Everyone is in on Tuesday and Thursday. The office is open from 8:00 to 6:30 on every working day if you'd rather come in more.
- Fridays have no internal meetings. Plenty of people start early in the week and finish at 1:00 on Friday. That's fine, as long as your hours add up.
- The print room keeps its own hours: 8:00 to 4:30, Monday to Friday, because the presses need two people. Next week's shifts are posted by Wednesday.
- Stepping out for more than an hour in core hours? Put it in your calendar. You don't need to ask.
Time off
We'd rather you took it. If you haven't booked ten days by July 1, your lead will ask what's in the way.
| Kind | What you get | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| Vacation | 22 days, January to December | Ask your lead. Two weeks ahead for a week or more, two days ahead for a single day. |
| Public holidays | 10 days, listed on the shared calendar | Nothing. |
| Winter closure | December 24 to January 1, on top of your 22 | Nothing. The office is shut. |
| Sick days | Not taken from your vacation | Message your lead by 9:30 am. Then rest. |
| Carry-over | Up to 5 unused days, to use by March 31 | Tell Nadia in December. |
Longer or harder things
If you're ill for more than five working days, or you need time to care for someone, talk to Nadia. What you're entitled to depends on your contract and on local law, and she'll go through it with you.
Parental leave, bereavement leave and jury duty are set out in your contract. Tell Nadia as early as you're comfortable doing so.
Pay and expenses
You shouldn't be out of pocket for doing your job, or waiting long to get it back.
- Payday is the 25th. If that falls on a weekend or a holiday, you're paid on the working day before. Your payslip is in the payroll app that morning.
- If your pay looks wrong, tell Nadia. A mistake is put right within three working days. It doesn't wait for next month.
Spending the company's money
- Claim by the 5th with a photo of the receipt, and you're paid back with that month's pay on the 25th.
- Work trips: standard-class travel, and up to $60 a day for meals. For more than one night away, book through Nadia.
- Learning: $800 a year each for courses, books and conferences. Ask your lead. It doesn't roll over.
- Not covered: your commute, parking fines, and the drinks after the dinner.
Equipment
You get what you need to do the work well, and you look after it.
- On day one there's a laptop on your desk (you pick from two models before you start), with a monitor, keyboard and headset.
- For home, $400 once, in your first three months, toward a chair, desk or monitor. What you buy is yours to keep.
- Laptops are replaced every four years, or sooner if yours is slowing you down. Tell Oskar.
- Look after it: screen lock on, updates installed within a week, and nobody else uses it, family included.
- Lost or stolen? Tell Oskar within the hour, whatever the day or time, so he can lock it. Nobody gets in trouble for losing a laptop. Waiting is what causes the damage.
- Your own phone is fine for chat and email once the sign-in app is on it.
- When you leave, the laptop and your door badge come back within five working days.
If something's wrong
Say so early. Small problems are easy to fix and old ones aren't.
- Start with your lead. Most things are sorted in one conversation.
- If it's about your lead, or it's personal, go to Nadia or Ilse, whichever is easier for you. It stays between you, unless you say otherwise or someone's safety is at risk.
- You'll hear back within two working days, with what happens next and when.
- Bullying, harassment and discrimination aren't acceptable here, from anyone, toward anyone, customers included. The full conduct policy is in the shared drive, in the People folder.
Who to ask
We're 20: seven in cartography, five in software, four in the print room, two in sales and support, plus Ilse and Nadia.
| About | Ask | How |
|---|---|---|
| Pay, contract, leave, anything personal | Nadia Rahimi, office manager | A message, or her desk by the kitchen. |
| Laptop, accounts, a lost device | Oskar Nyberg, software and IT | The #help-it channel. He's on IT Monday to Wednesday; other days, Nadia. For a lost device, phone him on any day. |
| Your work, priorities, time off | Your team lead | Any time, and at your one-to-one every two weeks. |
| Spending over $500, where we're heading | Ilse Roelofs, founder | In person on Tuesdays and Thursdays. |
| Print room shifts and safety | Emeka Okoro, print lead | In the print room, before 4:30. |
About this handbook
This is version 4, updated on Monday, November 2, 2026. Nadia keeps it. If something here is wrong, out of date or missing, tell her.
Changed since version 3: office days moved from Monday and Wednesday to Tuesday and Thursday, and the home allowance went from $300 to $400.
What this handbook isn't. It isn't your contract, and it isn't legal advice. Employment rules vary from place to place. An employment lawyer read this version before it went out, and where it disagrees with your contract or the law, those win.