WINNIPEG — A regular day at work is starting to look much different around Winnipeg, thanks to the input of millennials in the workplace.
Mental health breaks and an open and inclusive work space are starting to become the new normal according to millennials working at a branding agency called Think Shift.
“It would be tough to work anywhere else at this point in my career,” Sheena Case, a graphic designer at Think Shift said.
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The North American company employs around 60 people in Winnipeg. The office is completely open, with everyone working in the same room, including the CEO.
“It means that anybody can come by at any time, and you bump into people quite a bit more often, and you can just sit and have a meeting,” CEO of Think Shift, Dave Baker said.
Baker walks around the office, joking with employees, and handing out high fives.
He also hosts daily huddles, a chance for everyone in the office to gather, and just talk.
“We want to create connections,” said Baker. “We try to create that in the actual physical work space.”
It’s something a lot of millennials are looking for when they search for jobs, according to Legacy Bowes Group, a job recruitment company in Winnipeg.
“The phrase ‘fly by the seat of your pants,’ is not what a millennial wants to hear,” Lisa Cefali, a human resources professional with the company said.
WATCH: Lisa Cefali talks about how millennials are changing the work environment
Millennials are asking more questions than any other generation according to Cefali. She said they want to know where they can go with a company, and if that’s not clear, they’ll move on.
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“I see millennials who have been in the workforce for nine months, 10 months and they already want to get on to the next role.”
Job-hopping on the rise
The number of people who stay at the same job longer than four years has dropped “dramatically” over the past two decades, according to Workopolis.
From 1990-2002, a majority of Canadians (55-60 per cent) stayed in the same job for at least four years. That number was cut in half by 2002. In 2014, only 30 per cent of people held onto a job for more than four years, according to the career site.
The numbers above were cited from Workopolis.com.
But why are people leaving their jobs after four years? In 2014, Workopolis polled visitors to the website.
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“It turns out that a poor working relationship with their boss was the biggest reason to make a change. Disengagement at work was also a common factor,” the website stated.
Entrepreneurs and co-working
For those who can’t find the perfect job, they are trying to make it themselves. Cefali said a lot of millennials are starting their own businesses.
Co-working spaces are becoming popular in Winnipeg, for entrepreneurs and freelancers.
“Millennials are very much accustomed to the shared economy, and the sharing economy, an co-working is just a natural extension of that,” Jason Abbott with Launch Coworking Winnipeg said.
Launch Coworking is a meeting and event space where freelancers, entrepreneurs and small businesses can come together in a workspace to collaborate and network.
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For example if you’re a freelancer working at home, surrounded by distractions (television and laundry), you can rent out space in the building. The idea is to increase productivity and collaboration.
Millennials like Case working at Think Shift said the new ways of work are starting to rub off on other businesses, not just modern offices.
“My dad has a standing desk now. They have similar, not huddles, but team meetings and team stretches,” Case said.
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