If you’ve ever met Regina, you know she brings energy, and warmth to every room she walks into! As our HR Administrator, Regina combines professionalism with a fun, upbeat personality, always ready with a smile, and a good laugh.
Regina joined the West-Can HR team over a year and a half ago, bringing with her a diverse background in education and people-focused work. She graduated with distinction from Assiniboine College with a Diploma in Business Administration (Human Resource Management) and, completed her Bookkeeping Certificate at the same time.
Before joining West-Can HR, Regina worked as a licensed teacher in the Philippines, experience that strengthened her communication and leadership skills. She also worked at FYi Doctors and has volunteered with Westman Immigrant Services bringing her passion for helping others into both her professional and community work.
A true lifelong learner, Regina is always finding new ways to grow and bring even more value to our team. This year, she proudly earned her CPHR Candidate badge (CPHR Manitoba 2025) and is actively building the experience needed to become fully designated. And just recently, she achieved her Registered Professional Recruiter certificate (October 2025).
She’s currently pursuing a Legal Assistant program, believing that learning is a lifelong journey and that gaining new knowledge helps her better support West-Can HR.
Her favorite part of being at West-Can HR is helping job seekers, businesses, and the community all at once. She especially loves the recruitment side, bringing the right people and opportunities together.
When she’s not diving into her studies or helping people navigate the HR world, Regina can often be found giving back to the community through volunteer work.
And if you spot her out and about in Brandon or at local events, don’t hesitate to say hi, she’s always happy to talk about career opportunities, or simply connect with the community with a warm smile.
Resolving Issues Respectfully at Work
By: Regina Bayabay
When conflict pops up at work, it is easy to think it will end in lawyers and courtrooms. But most workplace disputes don’t have to go that far. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) offers practical tools to handle issues early, respectfully, and without the stress and cost of legal action. ADR focuses on finding solutions that work for everyone, which helps maintain morale, confidentiality, and long-term relationships. HR teams often lead these efforts, guiding employees through the process and ensuring policies are followed.
A simple and common ADR tool is negotiation which is a structured conversation, where both sides talk through the issue and try to find a solution together. Many workplaces in Manitoba even build negotiation steps into their contracts or internal policies so conflicts can be addressed before they escalate. Human Resource plays a key role here, helping employees navigate the discussion, offering advice, and ensuring fairness. The only exception is when insurance is involved, then the insurance company usually leads the negotiations.
If negotiation is not enough, mediation and arbitration are good next steps. Mediation uses a neutral third party to guide the conversation without deciding the outcome, while arbitration is more formal, with a binding decision made by an arbitrator. Organizations like the Manitoba Human Rights Commission and Mediation Services Winnipeg use mediation often because it’s private, relationship-focused, and efficient. HR teams are often involved in selecting mediators and making sure the process aligns with company policies. Arbitration is common in unionized settings or when contracts require it.
This all ties neatly into Respectful Workplace policies, which encourage employees to speak up early, try to resolve issues safely, and involve HR or supervisors if needed. ADR gives HR and managers a structured, fair way to support employees, keep conversations calm, and focus on solutions rather than blame. Skipping court isn’t cutting corners, it is choosing a smarter, faster, and more respectful path to solving workplace problems.
Sources:
ADR Institute of Manitoba. (n.d.). About ADR. https://adrmanitoba.ca
Mediation Services Winnipeg. (n.d.). About us. https://www.mediationserviceswpg.ca
Brandon Chamber of Commerce First Friday Coffee
– January 9, 2026
Brandon Chamber of Commerce Luncheon: The Future of Agriculture
– January 15, 2026
– January 20-22, 2026
Chamber 101
– January 27, 2025
Brandon Career Symposium – Save the Date!
– March 17-18, 2026
Robertson College Practicum Student Joins West-Can
Chidinma Ahaneku joined West-Can HR as an intern from Robertson College. She’s currently taking the Human Resources Professional Diploma, and as part of it, she’s completing a three-week internship with us from November 24 to December 12. During her time here, she gained hands-on experience in an office setting, helping with recruitment tasks, documenting candidate information, assisting with policies, and supporting our day-to-day operations.
The West-Can HR team is grateful for her time with us and the contributions she made during her stay!
Brandon Chamber of Commerce November Luncheon: Mental Health in the Workplace
We had a great time attending the Brandon Chamber of Commerce Luncheon! Our team really enjoyed networking and learning about mental health through a fun and engaging game. Experiences like this remind us how important mental health is in the workplace, it shapes how we show up, support one another, and work together as a team. A big thanks to keynote speaker Rebecca Gray for delivering such a meaningful and insightful talk through an interactive game.
At the table with us were the Career Connections team (Rushana and Tracy) and Rob from Universal Engravers.
West-Can HR Christmas Party 2025
Part I: Ginger Bread Making
West-Can HR kicked off the Christmas holiday spirit with a fun gingerbread-making session right in our boardroom! Look how creative everyone got (just… please don’t ask how we built them, they were not durable at all 😅). We now have all our masterpieces proudly displayed in the office, and it definitely brought lots of laughs and holiday vibes.
Part II: Dinner at The Keg
Later that same day, we headed to The Keg for dinner with our spouses, and everyone had an amazing time. Huge thanks to their accommodating staff for serving us an awesome meal, we truly felt spoiled!
We wrapped up the night with a super fun game prepared by Paula (Rob’s wife!), which had everyone so excited!
It was the perfect way to close out the year with the team, another unforgettable memory added to our West-Can story!
Wrapping Up 2025 with a Staff Appreciation Coffee
This December 1, West-Can HR hosted a Staff Appreciation Coffee for our team of hardworking and reliable temp workers. It was our little way of wrapping up the year and showing how grateful we are to have them, especially after this year’s big project, where we sent over 40 workers for a safety job that ran for almost six weeks.
We’re incredibly proud of the dedication our workers bring every day. Their commitment is the reason we’re able to support local businesses with dependable, on-the-spot staffing when they need it most. Whether it’s short-term help, project-based staffing, or a full crew for a big job, our workers always shows up and gets it done.
Here’s to a great year and an even stronger 2026!
