Kinew no fan of hybrid work; wants more public-sector employees back in city’s core

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This article was published 19/01/2024 (604 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew made his aversion to hybrid work arrangements clear to downtown business leaders Friday, suggesting public-sector workers may be asked to return to Winnipeg’s core with greater frequency.

“The idea that hybrid work should be the default is something that we need to revisit,” Kinew told members of the Downtown Winnipeg BIZ during a morning forum at the Winnipeg Art Gallery-Qaumajuq.

The premier was responding to questions of how the NDP government can encourage workers to return downtown and whether the province should set an example in bringing employees back to the core.

Some provincial public-sector employers that have offices in downtown Winnipeg include Manitoba Hydro, Manitoba Public Insurance, the Workers Compensation Board, Shared Health and the provincial government.

Kinew said downtown and the Exchange District have been hit hard by the remote work arrangements that emptied out office towers during the COVID-19 pandemic and continue today.

There is a long list of arguments for bringing workers back downtown, Kinew said, adding he personally feels hybrid work arrangements disrupt workflow, and he would be happy to never participate in another Zoom meeting.

“I think that is something that we’re going to get our handle on as we move forward,” he said.

“First and foremost, it’s about creating a good workplace culture for the front lines and them seeing their managers and their elected representatives show up in person and matching their commitment.”

In December, Manitoba Public Insurance ordered about 400 employees back to the office on a part-time basis as part of a hybrid work model.

According to the public auto insurer, managers in hybrid roles are expected to be in the office at least three days a week and staff will be on a rotation requiring three days in the office one week and two days the next. Contact centre employees will remain fully remote.

At Manitoba Hydro’s downtown headquarters, the Crown corporation’s 1,800 employees are required to spend at least three days a week in the office.

Speaking to reporters after the BIZ forum, Kinew said over the next few months the government will be ensuring that “folks who are working on the front lines who have to show up also see that the other people that they work with show up as well, too.”

The premier declined to elaborate on how much time he expects public-sector workers with hybrid arrangements, to spend in the office.

Remote work can be a useful recruitment and retention tool and it is important to keep some flexibility to accommodate specific human-resource requirements, he added.

“I’m not making a direction here today but this is something that we’re looking (at),” he said.

The premier emphasized people in management positions should not be working from home if their staff — he pointed to nurses, doctors and health-care aides — do not have a choice.

“We have so many people who have no choice but to show up as a front-line employee, and I would ask, how can you manage somebody who has to show up in person, if you’re not showing up in person?” he said.

“First and foremost, it’s about creating a good workplace culture for the front lines and them seeing their managers and their elected representatives show up in person and matching their commitment.”–Wab Kinew

The Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union, which represents approximately 32,000 public-sector workers, declined to comment Friday.

Downtown BIZ executive director Kate Fenske said the potential for more public-sector employees to be working downtown is exciting. The more people downtown, the safer and more vibrant it will be, she said.

“It’s not just about having workers back — that is absolutely a key piece — but in the last number of years, I think businesses have relied disproportionately on workers alone to be their customer base,” Fenske said.

“So, when we think about how we’re moving forward and how we transform our downtown, our big focus really is to get more people living downtown.”

Kinew also addressed questions from BIZ members about the government’s plan to address homelessness downtown and ongoing concerns with addictions, vandalism and thefts.

Tackling homelessness will take years, but his government is not going to tolerate excuses, the premier said.

The province will be increasing the budget for social housing and is exploring how it can provide “political cover” for municipalities to expropriate and repurpose chronically vacant properties this year, Kinew said.

“We are committed to ending chronic homelessness in Manitoba using this integrated approach: housing plus wrap-around services,” he said.

“If we work on that priority, along with setting the stage for the right sorts of investments, we can make progress on both the social and economic priorities that all of us hold dear.”

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca