Registration & Breakfast / Exhibits & Networking

Welcome Address

Many employers implement family-friendly policies such as flextime and compressed work weeks but do not always achieve the desired results. This presentation explores why many family-friendly practices fail to deliver the intended outcomes when they are implemented within a culture that focuses on hours worked rather than output, where “presenteeism” is equated with productivity.

The session will begin by examining why employee workloads, particularly at the managerial and professional levels, have increased over the past several decades. It will then explore the impact of high workloads on employees and the organization’s bottom line. The presentation will conclude with practical suggestions for reducing workloads without necessarily hiring additional staff.

This presentation draws on Duxbury and Higgins’ research on supportive management (n = 100,000) to explore the critical role of managers within an organization.

The session will begin by outlining the behaviours associated with effective and ineffective management and examining the difference a supportive manager can make to key employee and organizational outcomes. The discussion will then explore why many managers struggle with the “people” side of their role and identify potential solutions.

The final section will offer practical suggestions for managers on how to manage upwards and identify actions they can take within their own areas to support their teams and the organization.

Lunch, Exhibits & Networking

In today’s BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Nonlinear, Incomprehensible) environment, HR leaders in schoolboards are uniquely positioned to shape workplaces where staff feel supported, valued, and able to thrive. As well-being continues to be a key priority, there is an opportunity to move beyond standalone initiatives and embed well-being into the everyday culture of our organizations.

This engaging workshop focuses on how well-being is experienced through daily interactions, leadership practices, and organizational conditions. It highlights the powerful role HR professionals play in fostering environments where voice, trust, and psychological safety are part of the fabric of work.

Participants will explore:

• How to strengthen well-being through intentional culture-building

• The impact of everyday interactions on staff experience

• Strategies to amplify employee voice and build trust

• Leadership and organizational practices that support engagement and belonging

Grounded in the realities of school systems, this session offers practical approaches to cultivating a more human-centred, resilient workplace, where well-being is not an add-on, but anembedded and sustainable way of working.

Beyond the Medical Condition: A Holistic Approach to Disability Management and Employee Support

Because the medical condition is only part of the story.

An employee may have a medical condition. But it alone rarely tells us the whole story of what is preventing someone from returning to work, remaining at work, or succeeding once they are back.

The biopsychosocial approach recognizes that an employee’s health, recovery and ability to work are influenced by much more than their medical condition. Psychological factors, relationships, workplace culture, job demands, organizational practices and the broader circumstances can all shape the experience of absence, recovery and return to work.

So, what happens when we focus only on the medical condition?

We can miss the barriers that matter most.

This panel discussion will explore how taking a holistic, employee-centred approach to disability management and workplace support can help identify those barriers and lead to more meaningful and sustainable outcomes. We’ll look at the psychosocial factors that can influence an employee before, during and after an absence, and explore how understanding the whole person can lead to more effective, individualized support.

We’ll also examine the role of workplace culture and the psychosocial work environment. A psychologically healthy and safe workplace doesn’t just support recovery and return to work. It can also help prevent disability-related absences by addressing psychosocial risks, strengthening engagement and resilience, and creating conditions where employees can remain connected to work and thrive.

Participants will leave with a practical understanding of the biopsychosocial model and how it can be applied to disability management. We’ll explore how prevention, workplace well-being, accommodation, case management and employee support can work together to improve the employee experience, strengthen organizational outcomes and create healthier, more sustainable workplaces.

Because effective disability management starts with seeing the person, not just the medical condition.

Supporting Employee Mental Health in Complex School Environments

Seeing the risks that aren’t always visible.

How do you measure the risks that live in silence; the ones people stop talking about but never stop feeling?

Most school boards can easily identify operational risks, yet few can see their psychosocial ones.

What is the true cost of not seeing them? Are we fully aware of the long-term psychological harm created by gaps in our systems, policies, processes, and training?

Psychosocial hazard blind spots are like walking into a high-risk environment without PPE. The danger isn’t always visible, but the exposure is real, cumulative, and often overlooked. Over time, these risks can show up as disengagement, absenteeism, retention challenges, strained trust, and performance concerns that may be misunderstood as individual issues rather than signals of broader workplace strain.

Preventing psychosocial hazards isn’t just a wellness initiative; it is an operational responsibility and a core component of whole person protection. School boards that learn to see these silent risks can strengthen culture, reduce harm, and build environments where staff and students can genuinely thrive.

In this session we will share our insights and recommendations based on our experience with school boards in implementing the CSA Standard Z1003 on Psychological Health & Safety in the Workplace.

Most importantly, participants will leave with a clearer understanding of what to look for, where the risks may be hiding, and what Boards can do to move from reacting to psychological health concerns to proactively managing psychosocial risk.

Because you can’t manage a risk you can’t see.

From Evaluation to Action

Using SBCI’s Leading Practices to Strengthen Workers’ Compensation, Workplace Support and Health & Safety Programs

What if you could step back from individual programs and see the whole picture of how your Board is managing absence, injury, disability, health and safety, and employee well-being?

This session will explore how school boards can use SBCI’s Leading Practices to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of their Worker’s Compensation, Workplace Support Services and Health & Safety programs, identify where the system is working well, and uncover the gaps, duplication and missed opportunities that may be affecting outcomes and driving unnecessary costs.

Rather than looking at WCB, Workplace Support and Health & Safety as separate functions, the evaluation looks at how well these programs work together as a system. It asks the questions that matter to leaders:

Do we have senior leadership buy in, culture, strategy, policies, resources, data and case management practices in place? Are our programs effective and well-integrated? Are we using our data to identify opportunities for prevention and early intervention? And most importantly, are all these pieces working together to deliver comprehensive programming?

Leading Practices provide a practical framework for answering those questions. The evaluation gives leaders a clear picture of where their programs are today, where the gaps and opportunities exist, and where investments in prevention, early intervention, case management and program effectiveness could have the greatest impact on outcomes and costs.

Ultimately, this is about moving from managing individual programs to managing the system as a whole.

Comprehensive programming means having preventative measures in place, as well as the right support to promote employee health and well-being, intervene early when concerns arise, and effectively manage absence, injury and disability when they occur. When these pieces work together, Boards can improve employee outcomes, support student success and, importantly, identify meaningful opportunities to reduce the significant costs associated with absenteeism.

Legal/governance considerations for employers when implementing Psychological Health and Safety Programs/Policies

This presentation will explore employee wellbeing as the foundation for student success through four key themes: legislative obligations, implementation, governance, and student outcomes. It will explore: (i) employers’ obligations relating to workplace mental health, harassment, accommodation, and disability management; (ii) how to implement effective psychological health and safety programs, including risk assessments, policies, training, and reporting processes; and (iii) the role of senior leadership and boards in oversight, accountability, and organizational culture. The session will also examine how employee wellbeing affects the ability of educators and staff to deliver positive outcomes for students. The presentation will provide actionable strategies to strengthen workplace wellbeing while supporting student success.

Networking Event