MPI's decision to put brakes on full-time remote work for employees disappointing, union says

The union representing Manitoba Public Insurance employees says many of its members are upset after the Crown corporation ordered hundreds of staff to return to the office on at least a part-time basis.

On Tuesday, the auto insurer unveiled a hybrid work program that requires many employees based out of its downtown Winnipeg headquarters to work in the office either full time or part time.

An MPI spokesperson said the new policy will bring the corporation in line with hybrid work arrangements established by the Manitoba government, provincial Crown corporations and other large organizations.

The Manitoba Government and General Employees' Union, however, isn't pleased with the planned change. 

The new policy will bring around 400 MPI employees back into the office, after they were sent to work from home during COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and restrictions.

"We know that many of our members are upset about the change in work arrangements at MPI. We understand that this will affect their day-to-day lives," MGEU president Kyle Ross said in a statement. 

After a nine-week-long strike by MPI employees that ended in November, "we would have expected that they would do everything they could to rebuild relationships and not further upset their workforce," Ross said.

Under the current policy, 619 of the public insurer's 1,165 employees were designated as remote employees, as of November.

The remaining 546 employees either work on-site or already had hybrid roles.

The new hybrid program, which takes effect on Feb. 26, 2024, will move affected employees to a predetermined schedule of working three days in the office one week and two days the next week.

MPI's approximately 200 contact centre employees are exempt from the shift to a hybrid work model, the corporation said.

Those in management roles designated as hybrid positions are expected in the office at least three days a week, according to MPI.

A memo to employees said the existing program, where workers are either considered remote, hybrid or on-site, lacked structure and the criteria for designations "haven't always been clear."

That "has put a tremendous amount of ownership on our leaders to make decisions about how to assign work types," the memo said.

MPI said its new policy will support "work-life balance while encouraging more in-person collaboration" among employees.

Bringing workers back downtown

The shift will also bring more MPI employees back to Cityplace, the downtown office and retail complex where it occupies two floors, "helping to contribute to the vitality of downtown Winnipeg," the memo said.

MPI "proudly owns the heritage building our headquarters is in and we have a responsibility to maintain a strong presence in the core of our city," it said.

Kate Fenske, CEO of the Downtown Winnipeg Business Improvement Zone, is happy to hear more employees will be back.

"Whether it's a Crown corporation or a private company that is committed to our downtown, that is investing in our downtown and wants our downtown to be successful, having more people here not only improves vibrancy, but it also improves safety," Fenske said.

"Hearing that hundreds more people might be coming back to work downtown is great news."

A separate memo to employees, which answered questions about the new policy and was obtained by CBC, says neither the new NDP government nor MPI's board of directors dictated the new plan, but both support it.

Other Crown corporations also have models that see employees in their offices at least part time.

A large majority of Manitoba Hydro's 1,800 employees work in the utility's downtown highrise on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, and remotely on Mondays and Wednesdays.

The office isn't empty on those days, however — 20 per cent of staff are in the building, either because they are required to be or choose it.

Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries operates a hybrid model for 500 eligible employees.

That's allowed the corporation to unload two office spaces (on Empress Street and Milt Stegall Drive) and consolidate most of its staff into a single location, 1555 Buffalo Pl.

The corporation says 90 per cent of Buffalo Place employees work under a hybrid arrangement.

The newest Crown corporation, however, still allows most of its employees to work remotely. Efficiency Manitoba says 70 per cent of its 80 employees are primarily out of the office. The remaining staff work in the office a minimum of five days every two weeks.

Some of the remote work employees spend a portion of their time at customer sites to complete energy efficiency project assessments and verifications, the corporation said.

A quarter of Manitoba's nearly 12,000 civil service workers are under a hybrid working model, which sees them in the office at least one day per month.