Since Peel Region provides various services with different work environments for each department, the skill sets, relationship dynamics and daily interactions in each department is distinct, as is the effect on employee mental health, said Carolyn Tong, manager of health and wellness in human resources, during a session at Benefits Canada’s 2025 Mental Health Summit.
The organization was a winner in Benefits Canada’s 2024 Workplace Benefits Awards for its innovative approach to support the mental health of its diverse workforce. The regional municipality, which is comprised of Brampton, Caledon and Mississauga, serves more than 1.5 million residents and has around 7,000 employees.
Read: Peel Region’s extensive collection of data leads to mental-health win
Peel Region has faced several challenges in recent years, including the coronavirus response and recovery. The pandemic affected employees differently depending on their job, said Tong, whether it meant office workers transitioning to remote work or long-term care nurses learning to adhere to policy and procedure changes.
Another challenge was the threat of the region’s dissolution, which was halted on December 2023 with new mandates added. During these crises, employee mental health and well-being remained top of mind, she said.
With mental health as a priority, the municipality developed its psychological health and safety framework with three pillars: me, we and us. The main goals of the framework are to have an organizational commitment to psychological health, safety and well-being; balance individual and organizational responsibilities and ownership; and to demonstrate community and industry leadership.
“Well-being is very diverse. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all [approach] for well-being.”
Peel Region is first responder-focused since those employees have the potential to be exposed to a high number of psychologically traumatic events, said Tong, noting the municipality partnered with a health company to expedite the process of psychological consultation, provide coverage through the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board or extended health benefits, provide treatments following consultation and have culturally responsive psychological support.
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The instilled framework helped support the region’s commitment to adopt Canada’s National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace, she added. As well, its HR data analytics provides insight on attendance, turnover, absences, personal and vacation time off to inform the organization on behaviour to understand employee mental health and well-being.
This data also informs its dashboard program that works with various mental-health factors, such as balance, engagement and organizational culture, to assess the organization’s overall mental health.
Peel Region uses several modernized approaches that other employers can use to integrate well-being into their plan to address the root causes of mental-health issues, noted Tong. These include incorporating systematic psychological safety, psychologically safe leadership, employee supports and resource administration, communications strategy and data development.
Read more coverage of the 2025 Mental Health Summit.