EllisDon is excited to introduce Connie Ellis, EllisDon’s Director of Mental Health, and one of a few in the construction industry. 

Ellis comes to EllisDon with an MA in Industrial and Organizational Psychology and extensive experience in corporate mental health program design and management. She joins us from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) with a history of designing and facilitating workshops and courses that are evidence-based and preventative. Connie comes from a family and community of tradespeople, giving her a unique perspective on mental health in the construction industry. She has no problem starting contentious conversations and is keen to apply her knowledge and experience to building a comprehensive mental health strategy that is aligned with EllisDon values and embedded in our Business Plan.

“A comprehensive mental health strategy starts from the grassroots level and that’s achieved through our leaders on the ground,” said Ellis. “Having a dedicated mental health team is foundational to starting, but when it comes down to it, it’s our leaders that are going to do a lot of the heavy lifting in promoting organizational psychological health and safety. Of course, with the enabling support of the mental health team in advocating our resources, providing skill-based competency training and always having a little fun along the way At the end of the day, the relationship you have with your leader and how you value their leadership characteristics are more or equally influential on your mental health than your personal relationships.”

Ellis’ goal is to bring mental health to the people with training programs and information sessions that centre on having meaningful human conversation in the workplace. This is rooted in the idea that no matter what we do, keeping our personal and professional lives separate is an impossible task.

“We are all people. We are all human. We have good days, and we have bad days, and not all of the bad days are depression, anxiety or grief. Our kids are struggling in school, or we have a parent who is ill, and we bring that into our workplaces, whether we want to or not,” said Ellis. “Sometimes, all we need is someone to show support and that's going to come from the people you work with everyday.”

EllisDon’s culture is entrepreneurial and community focused, and none of that exists without safe, happy and healthy people. Supporting the mental health of our employees is a significant part of our commitment to sending everyone home safely to their family and friends, every day.

Bringing Ellis on board demonstrates that EllisDon is an organization that is prioritizing physical and psychological health and safety, both of which are inextricably linked. It echoes the shift we are seeing in the construction industry where organizations are adding mental health resources to more proactively support their employees, and illustrates that EllisDon is not just a corporation – we are people first.