Winnipeg | Restaurants

[Winnipegger]

Originally Posted by Mr Tall Forehead

^ probably true...though it might be harder for someone to write an essay on the merits of working from home, while on work time at the office.

Hey now, like 90% of the users here, I don't work whether I'm at home or in the office. Perks of not having a manager!

[EdwardTH]

Originally Posted by trueviking

We aren't going to solve climate change by having white collar workers stay home. Working from home is not a worker's right.

Having government employees return to work will definitely help downtown, but that is not the reason they should...i see this often used as an argument by those who want to stay home.

Private industry has overwhelmingly decided that it is better for their business to have people work together....this is likely for many reasons...productivity, creativity, mentorship, corporate culture and connection, team building.....because of this, taxpayer funded workers need to follow suit....there can't really be an argument that it is better for the government for workers to stay home if private industry has decided that it is not....all the anecdotal arguments about productivity, etc. are irrelevant, because if it really was better, for-profit industry would be doing it.

If we came out of covid and industry said, yup, this WFH thing is better for us, then fine, government can do the same.....but they didn't, so government needs to follow.

I know this is a sensitive topic.

Oh give me a break. Companies have openly admitted they are using RTO to get employees to quit instead of layoffs. You’re far too intelligent to believe that “well the CEOs think this way is best” is a good argument. And I would expect someone like you to know better than to think a bunch of people driving in and then leaving at 4pm is not going to revitalize downtown. That’s what we had pre-pandemic, ghost town after 5pm and on weekends and most folks like yourself were specifically saying we need residents, not office workers coming in during business hours and then promptly fleeing to the suburbs. This ain’t the answer.

As for all the “creativity, mentorship, corporate culture and connection” etc etc, this is pretty out of touch. Maybe this stuff is true for people in creative fields like fancy architects. But the majority of us absolutely do not need to commute every day to sit at a computer by ourselves, stare at a screen and tap away at a keyboard. You RTO lovers keep trying to tell people how engaging it is to go sit in a soul-sucking beige room for 8 hours and it’s laughable.

Originally Posted by drew

Yeah the work from home argument doesn't fly for me.

It really boils down to people who work from home, just don't really work that much. It's not an accusation - it's just the reality.

The data says otherwise. That's just like, your opinion man.

I wrote this essay from the office btw. I find that in the office, being at your desk and doing something that looks like working matters more than actually working. When you WFH you need to actually be able to show what you did all day.

[trueviking]

Originally Posted by drew

Yeah the work from home argument doesn't fly for me.

It really boils down to people who work from home, just don't really work that much. It's not an accusation - it's just the reality.

oof...i didn't say it.

it is funny to me that when I ask people what they like about working from home, the answer is always a list of things that have nothing to do with work.

[trueviking]

it's not even a question for me that working with other people is better for the actual work than working from your dining room is.

The impact on downtown is just a side benefit.

I do admit that it bothers me that life has become a competition to see who can leave their house the least...i think its bad for everyone that we all want to work in our pajamas, stream movies from our couch, pay people to drive our food to us.....it was better when people went outside.

[EdwardTH]

Originally Posted by trueviking

oof...i didn't say it.

it is funny to me that when I ask people what they like about working from home, the answer is always a list of things that have nothing to do with work.

This is disingenuous. #1, being able to work in a quiet, focused environment instead of being shoved into a big, open, noisy beige room with 100 other people making noise all day. It's wild how you go to school and there's this concept of libraries and study halls being quiet spaces because it's universally understood that people need quiet and minimal distractions to focus on their work, and then you enter the workforce and have to appease executives (and architects apparently) who want you to believe that's somehow suddenly not true anymore.

And the stuff that isn't directly work-related - if it doesn't negatively affect performace, what does it matter? You can walk your dog at lunch, or pick your kid up earlier. That results in happier and less stressed employees which results in higher productivity.

[Malcsta]

It's most certainly a privilege to WFH these days but my empathy lies with those who were lied to about it. I know a few people who had this happen to them. Most notably, a friend of mine who was hired during the pandemic. He was initially presented with an offer which stated in writing that he would work from home permanently, and now recently he's basically been told, "yeah you need to come in, its not fair to the new hires that we have some people who don't need to come into the office".

Upon getting hired, he and his wife had a child, moved to Oakbank, and she went to nursing school. Now he watches the toddler while she works long hours. Having him return to the office completely changes his life. He's applied for daycare but they told him it may be 8-12 months before that can happen. A year to wait for daycare.

I have a hybrid schedule and it works out fine for me. I like working in the office and can confirm that I'm more productive when I do. But WFH has shaped peoples lives and that should not be overlooked. Its easier said than done to return to the office.

[optimusREIM]

Originally Posted by Malcsta

It's most certainly a privilege to WFH these days but my empathy lies with those who were lied to about it. I know a few people who had this happen to them. Most notably, a friend of mine who was hired during the pandemic. He was initially presented with an offer which stated in writing that he would work from home permanently, and now recently he's basically been told, "yeah you need to come in, its not fair to the new hires that we have some people who don't need to come into the office".

Upon getting hired, he and his wife had a child, moved to Oakbank, and she went to nursing school. Now he watches the toddler while she works long hours. Having him return to the office completely changes his life. He's applied for daycare but they told him it may be 8-12 months before that can happen. A year to wait for daycare.

I have a hybrid schedule and it works out fine for me. I like working in the office and can confirm that I'm more productive when I do. But WFH has shaped peoples lives and that should not be overlooked. Its easier said than done to return to the office.

That's BS legally speaking. Changing the terms of employment can amount to 'constructive dismissal'. Could be a good point of leverage in discussions with the employer, or worst case an employment lawyer. I myself am in support of having people work at the office, that said, you can't change the terms of someone's employment. I have a little less sympathy for those who went to a full WFH temporarily due to covid, and then assumed that this was how business would be done forever and then assumed they would never get called back into the office and made some decisions to change their location or their lifestyles knowing full-well that it was possible if not likely that they would get called back in down the line.

[optimusREIM]

Originally Posted by trueviking

it's not even a question for me that working with other people is better for the actual work than working from your dining room is.

The impact on downtown is just a side benefit.

I do admit that it bothers me that life has become a competition to see who can leave their house the least...i think its bad for everyone that we all want to work in our pajamas, stream movies from our couch, pay people to drive our food to us.....it was better when people went outside.

100% agreed. The inward turning of our society and culture is certainly contributing to a lot of the social issues these days. There are multiple factors of course, but never having to interact directly with live humans day-to-day is not helping.

[BAKGUY]

I'm absolutely Loving hot the last few post keep true to the threads heading, going on about all the new restaurants in Winnipeg. Keep it up! Great dining choices mentioned!

[neutroniks]

So, the new Jimmy Johns on Pembina opened today.

And also a new brunch European-style Brunch spot opened up at the old Chosabi space on King St next to Bronuts, called Soho. I believe it's owned by the same people that opened Sho Coffee Bar.
https://www.instagram.com/soho.k.w/

They seem to have pretty good marketing and everything looks pretty good. Might try it on the weekend!

Speaking of Bronuts, they got a new sign up.

Livens up that street nicely.

[WinCitySparky]

Originally Posted by BAKGUY

I'm absolutely Loving hot the last few post keep true to the threads heading, going on about all the new restaurants in Winnipeg. Keep it up! Great dining choices mentioned!

Sorry officer

[trueviking]

Originally Posted by EdwardTH

This is disingenuous. #1, being able to work in a quiet, focused environment instead of being shoved into a big, open, noisy beige room with 100 other people making noise all day. It's wild how you go to school and there's this concept of libraries and study halls being quiet spaces because it's universally understood that people need quiet and minimal distractions to focus on their work, and then you enter the workforce and have to appease executives (and architects apparently) who want you to believe that's somehow suddenly not true anymore.

And the stuff that isn't directly work-related - if it doesn't negatively affect performace, what does it matter? You can walk your dog at lunch, or pick your kid up earlier. That results in happier and less stressed employees which results in higher productivity.

It's not disingenuous....it's why most private companies have brought their employees back to work.....if productivity was better at people's dining room tables, that's where we would all be working.

We have conducted a real world study for several years now, and the results are in.

[trueviking]

Originally Posted by Malcsta

Its easier said than done to return to the office.

I agree with this...inertia is real....the impacts of the pandemic will last for years to come.

[trueviking]

Originally Posted by neutroniks

So, the new Jimmy Johns on Pembina opened today.

And also a new brunch European-style Brunch spot opened up at the old Chosabi space on King St next to Bronuts, called Soho. I believe it's owned by the same people that opened Sho Coffee Bar.
https://www.instagram.com/soho.k.w/

They seem to have pretty good marketing and everything looks pretty good. Might try it on the weekend!

Speaking of Bronuts, they got a new sign up.

Livens up that street nicely.

good news....I do wish the exchange had more affordable and quick lunch spots instead of fancy restaurants.

[wags_in_the_peg]

Originally Posted by trueviking

good news....I do wish the exchange had more affordable and quick lunch spots instead of fancy restaurants.

^Sharma Khan and RRC grill are my 2 favourites

[FactaNV]

European breakfast is interesting...in all my travels in europe its usually bread and cheese or cold cuts lol

[CoryB]

Originally Posted by trueviking

The food truck thing still boggles my mind.

It is the exact same thinking as why workers need to be downtown.

Originally Posted by trueviking

Hopefully with Ontario government workers going back to the office, the city and province here, and the feds will all follow suit sooner rather than later. Private industry is back. It’s time for taxpayer funded employees to do the same as their private counterparts. That will help.

Strongly and fundamentally disagree. The approach the BC government took on this same issue is what we should be asking for the Provincial and Federal levels. The BC government said if a position can be done fully remote that it is being made fully remote on a permanent basis, provided the remote location is within the province. If we did that in Manitoba it would allow a much higher geographic disbursement of the economic spinoff effects of people being employed in communities. If your vision is limited to only big buildings in downtown Winnipeg, yes that does not work well, but with Starlink and other high speed internet services in rural Manitoba there is no reason people could not be working from an acreage two or more hours outside of Winnipeg. And guess what all those trickle down economic benefits then reach much beyond Winnipeg. The same applies for the federal government and I would make a case they should be added points there for people that are located in significantly rural or remote communities, especially in the North.

[CoryB]

Originally Posted by trueviking

oof...i didn't say it.

it is funny to me that when I ask people what they like about working from home, the answer is always a list of things that have nothing to do with work.

How about not having a 3 hour conversation you are not part of about last nights Jets/Bombers/etc game happening right next to your work space. Any guess how that impacts productivity?

[EdwardTH]

Originally Posted by trueviking

It's not disingenuous....it's why most private companies have brought their employees back to work.....if productivity was better at people's dining room tables, that's where we would all be working.

We have conducted a real world study for several years now, and the results are in.

The overwhelming majority of North Americans have decided that cars are the superior method of travel. Anyone who doesn't currently drive should be forced to because the people have spoken and they almost all choose cars. If trains and bikes were better than that's how we would all be getting around. We used to have that and then we overwhelmingly chose to switch to cars because they are obviously superior.

[CoryB]

Originally Posted by Malcsta

my empathy lies with those who were lied to about it. I know a few people who had this happen to them. Most notably, a friend of mine who was hired during the pandemic. He was initially presented with an offer which stated in writing that he would work from home permanently, and now recently he's basically been told, "yeah you need to come in, its not fair to the new hires that we have some people who don't need to come into the office".

Originally Posted by optimusREIM

That's BS legally speaking. Changing the terms of employment can amount to 'constructive dismissal'. Could be a good point of leverage in discussions with the employer, or worst case an employment lawyer. I myself am in support of having people work at the office, that said, you can't change the terms of someone's employment.

Both these comments show the general lack of understanding of employment law that lots of these organizations are able to exploit. Going back before the pandemic Manitoba and Canadian (federal industry) labor laws have "work location" as being at a sole discretion of only the employer. (full stop).

So yeah the employer could make an offer that says "permanent remote" and then tell someone get into the office and there is no protection for the employee and the only thing a lawyer is going to do is empty you wallet.