Healthy Workplace Strategic Plan

Context

As we launch the 2025-2028 Healthy Workplace Strategic Plan, we are starting from a place of strength and experience. Our Healthy Workplace Journey began in 2009 and has since progressed to reach national levels of recognition, including comprehensive programming and resources, and fosters a strong community and culture around workplace wellness. 

Healthy Workplace has served as a source of stability and support for the Carleton community for the past 16 years. It will continue to be a crucial resource as we navigate the next several years together. The well-being challenges faced by Carleton faculty and staff are increasingly complex and include factors that reside both within and beyond the workplace. This strategic plan was created with input from members across the Carleton community including staff, managers, faculty members, subject-matter experts and key stakeholders. Financial stress, mental health and psychological safety, work-life balance, and challenges related to maintaining physical health have all been identified as areas of concern within our community. 

The ability to adapt is crucial in uncertain times, and Healthy Workplace is committed to continuing to support Carleton faculty and staff by providing resources, supporting skill development, and nurturing connections within our community. Carleton University has and continues to rise to the challenges facing our organization, the sector, and the world. This plan recognizes that the language, perceptions, and nuances around ideas about workplace wellness have evolved and will continue to evolve over time to reflect our current context. 

Aspiration

Healthy Workplace exists to support Carleton University in being a workplace where health and well-being are infused into every aspect of our work and community, where ultimately everyone can flourish.

Pursuits

We see workplace health and well-being as a collective responsibility where every member of the community has an important role to play and invaluable contributions to make. A healthy workplace occurs at every level and area of the organization and requires ongoing engagement and effort.

In the spirit of continuing our commitment to a healthy workplace, this strategy outlines a series of interconnected pursuits – intentional areas of activity aligned with key themes that reflect our current context and the needs identified by our community. Priorities have been identified for each pursuit that serve to advance progress over the life of the strategy and support continued alignment to the aspiration. 

Pursuit 1: Creating opportunities for social connection and interaction

Social wellness in the workplace provides a sense of connection that supports an individual’s ability to navigate setbacks, cope with feelings of loneliness, manage day-to-day stress, and feel a sense of community within their work life. Social wellness is directly connected to mental health and is crucial for creating a supportive and inclusive environment where employees feel valued as individuals, connected with their peers, and empowered in their work. 

Healthy Workplace contributes to social wellness on campus by fostering a sense of community and belonging through creating opportunities for faculty and staff to connect in meaningful ways.

Priorities:

• Facilitating opportunities for all employees to meet and connect with colleagues from across the institution with the intention to break down silos, build new relationships, and strengthen existing ones.
• Providing tools, guidance, and support for groups and leaders to foster social connection among teams.
• Creating opportunities for faculty and staff to actively participate in and contribute to the healthy workplace culture by facilitating diverse learning and growth opportunities, creative workshops, and community-wide programming that allow colleagues to connect meaningfully outside of work-related matters.

Pursuit 2: Fostering safe, respectful, and inclusive environments

Workplace health and well-being intersects with crucial considerations around accessibility, equity, diversity, and safety. A psychologically safe, respectful and inclusive workplace environment provides the foundation for employee health and well-being as well as organizational effectiveness. 

Healthy Workplace is committed to supporting a culture of belonging where everyone feels valued, respected, and empowered to fully participate and contribute positively to the workplace. 

Priorities:

• Improving the accessibility, diversity, and cultural sensitivity of Healthy Workplace offerings.
• Facilitating learning opportunities that enable faculty and staff to foster respectful workspaces, celebrate diversity, and reduce stigma in the workplace.
• Sharing diverse stories and perspectives to empower the faculty and staff community to pursue and contribute to a healthy workplace in a way that is relevant and meaningful for them.
• Collaborating with Carleton community partners to create safe and inclusive spaces, while empowering community members to model healthy behaviors and foster a caring environment.

Pursuit 3: Embracing a holistic culture of well-being

A holistic culture of well-being recognizes that health and well-being encompasses a variety of dimensions, including physical, mental, emotional, financial, professional, spiritual, and social. As individuals and organizations encounter increasingly complex and challenging health and well-being needs, a holistic approach promotes adaptability, supports workplace mental health, and fosters personal growth and fulfillment.

Healthy Workplace embraces a holistic culture of well-being by addressing the many interconnected dimensions of wellness that impact the health and well-being of Carleton’s community members. In particular, there is increasing recognition of the importance of support for mental health. We strive to support an environment that allows faculty and staff to flourish both professionally and personally.

Priorities:

• Designing and delivering Healthy Workplace programming that promotes and reflects a holistic culture of well-being by reinforcing the many dimensions of well-being including physical, mental, emotional, financial, professional, spiritual, and social.
• Promoting and facilitating comprehensive mental health programming and supports, including internal resources and training opportunities to enhance employee well-being and increase awareness of workplace mental health, while continuously evaluating and improving the programming based on feedback.
• Strengthening campus partnerships for Healthy Workplace initiatives and sharing wellness resources at Carleton. Consulting with local, national, and global experts for insights on key challenges and evidence-based workplace well-being supports and practices. 

Moving Forward

The 2025-2028 Healthy Workplace Strategy will be shared with the Carleton community through a series of campus-wide communications, faculty and staff initiatives, and other engagements.

Working alongside key partners, the Healthy Workplace Committee and Champions Network will prioritize the implementation of the 2025-2029 strategic plan at all levels of the organization. 

An action plan is in development to support the interconnected pursuits highlighted as part of the 2025-2029 strategic plan, including tasks, activities, and opportunities that align with key priorities. This action plan will be updated and evaluated yearly for the duration of the strategy. 

The annual evaluation and report will feature Carleton faculty and staff who champion the pursuits of the strategy and recognize these efforts and commitments as a way to encourage creativity, connection, and a sense of community among departments across campus. The report will be made available to key stakeholders and members of the community.

The 2025 –2028 Healthy Workplace Strategy reaffirms Carleton University’s Strategic Direction to Strive for Wellness.  By fostering a healthy workplace culture that embraces meaningful change and encourages adaptability, Carleton’s faculty and staff community can be better supported in flourishing both in the workplace and beyond. A commitment to providing resources, training, spaces for open conversation, and a supportive community will ensure adaptability and responsiveness to the evolving needs of the community. 

Strategic Linkages

The 2025-2028 Strategic Plan recognizes a number of strategic documents that support and align with Carleton’s continued commitment to a healthy workplace. These strategic linkages will assist in the continued pursuit of a healthy workplace and promote an organization where health and well-being are infused into every aspect of our work and community.

• Coordinated Accessibility Strategy
• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Action Plan
• People, Finance and Operations Strategy
• Kinàmàgawin (Learning Together) – Final Report of the Carleton University Strategic Indigenous Initiatives Committee (CUSIIC)
• Outdoor Space Master Plan
• Strategic Integrated Plan  
• Student Mental Health Framework