The COVID-19 global pandemic created unprecedented rapid change and increased organizational stress, especially in healthcare organizations. Employee engagement rates decrease during times of change and organizational stress, such as the pandemic. Positive patient outcomes, including lower mortality rates, are attributed to engagement. Germane to this study is that first-line managers are key to maintaining and improving employee engagement. The concept of employee engagement is consistent; however, the concepts that are opposite to engagement including burnout and active disengagement differ. The question central to this study is, if different concepts are described as opposite to employee engagement, how are these concepts identified, understood, and subsequently addressed through management interventions, and do the phenomena require different interventions? If first-line nurse managers are expected to positively impact employee engagement and minimize burnout and active disengagement post-pandemic, further exploration of how this triad of concepts is understood, perceived, and experienced by first-line nurse managers is essential. The study occurred in a Western Canadian province impacted by the global pandemic. Using interpretive descriptive methodology, interviews were conducted with first-line healthcare managers to gain an understanding of participants’ perspectives of the phenomena integral to the study. This study is significant because there is a dearth of research regarding the triad of phenomena, active disengagement, burnout, and engagement, despite the influence of the outcomes of the concepts on staff, patients, and organizations. Understanding what engagement is not, and how first-line managers can address staff engagement is paramount to recruiting and retaining healthcare workers.