The Honourable Seamus O’Regan
Minister of Labour
Seamus O’Regan is the Member of Parliament for St. John’s South-Mount Pearl, elected in 2015. In 2021, he was appointed Canada’s Minister of Labour, having served in the roles of Minister of Natural Resources, Minister of Indigenous Services, and Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence.
Seamus was born in St. John’s, Newfoundland, and raised in Goose Bay, Labrador. He studied politics at St. Francis Xavier University and University College Dublin, and marketing strategies at the INSEAD Business School, near Paris. He earned his Master of Philosophy degree from the University of Cambridge, studying Indigenous participation in natural resource development.
He began his career in the Government of Newfoundland & Labrador, where he served as Executive Assistant to Minister of Justice and Attorney General Edward Roberts, and later as Senior Policy Advisor to Premier Brian Tobin.
Seamus is known to many Canadians for his ten years as co-host of CTV’s Canada AM, where he travelled across Canada and around the world, from Random Island to False Creek, and from Antarctica to Afghanistan. In 2007, he became the first journalist named to Canada’s Top 40 Under 40.
Seamus is proud to have been an Ambassador for Bell Let’s Talk, eliminating the stigma surrounding mental illness. He has served on the Board of World Wildlife Fund Canada, and continues to champion causes dear to him, including mental health, sustainable jobs, the environment, and the arts.
As part of his mandate as Minister of Labour, he is tasked with making mental health a part of occupational health and safety, advancing pay equity, providing Canadians in the federally-regulated private sector with 10 paid sick days, building a federal “right to disconnect,” and lead a comprehensive plan to lower emissions and create more sustainable jobs for Canada’s workers.
David Simmonds
Global Chief Communications and Sustainability Officer at Great-West Life
David Simmonds is the Global Chief Communications and Sustainability Officer for Great-West Life. In this role, David has accountability for driving strategy and alignment around corporate purpose, ESG, and global impact across LifeCo’s executives, business units, and employees. He leads cross-functional efforts focused on harnessing the full strength of LifeCo’s efforts to affect positive change while creating value for stakeholders. He also provides strategic partnership and advisory guidance to the CEO agenda.
Prior to LifeCo, David had a successful career at McKesson. A member of the company executive leadership team, David worked in both the US and Canada leading teams across corporate marketing, enterprise strategy, and public affairs, until his promotion to SVP, Communications & Public Affairs for McKesson Canada.
David is a member of Western University’s Board of Governors; Director and President Elect of the Canadian Club of Toronto; a Governor of the Stratford Festival; and an Advisory Board Member at Catalyst Canada.
David’s been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Black Canadians by the Diversity Advancement Network; he serves as an expert panelist at the Centre for the Purpose of the Corporation; and recently completed an appointment as Visiting Professor at Western University where his teaching focused on social storytelling, brand, and cause marketing.
A graduate of Western University, David holds an Honours BA, MA, and completed the executive development program at the Wharton School.
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