Working at the City of Winnipeg: My Journey and Why I Left

Aug 18, 20246 min read

I worked with the City of Winnipeg for about 1 years and 7 months as a Customer Service Rep in the Transit Plus department. Transit Plus is a door-to-door service for people unable to use regular transit because of a physical disability. So, I was not with regular transit or 311!Contrary to what many people assumed, I wasn't working as a 311 representative. Despite the frequent confusion, my role was solely focused on Transit Plus.

If you are not aware, 311 is a phone number to report, apply/register, pay, or view/find information about popular City services, programs, and activities.

For transit plus, they had a dedicated phone line and a completely separate department.

My position title was Clerk A. City grouped their employees in different Clerk levels. ‘A’ being the starting level and then B and C being senior levels.

I recently resigned and I would like to share my experience and the reason why I quit.

How did I hear about this position?

Right after I graduated in 2022, I was working full-time with Walmart and was looking for a part-time job. My roommate worked with the city, and that's how I heard about this position. I was primarily looking for an additional source of income, and the fact that it was a government job appealed to me for its stability, and it was going to be remote. I also thought it might be a good opportunity to explore a potential full-time role in the future. And thus, as soon as they opened a few more positions, I immediately applied.

Application process

It took 4 months to begin working after I submitted my application. Yes, 4 months !!

I applied on City of Winnipeg career’s website. Their application process included some clearly defined, well separated steps. I started with uploading my Resume and Cover Letter and answered some job specific questions. Pretty straight forward and an easy process.

I applied in October 2023 and received a Test Assignment in November. It was an on-line assessment to check knowledge of MS Word , a typing test and a customer service skills assessment.

And then in December, I received an email for an interview which included questions from the job description. There were multiple people who conducted the interview and it obviously went well coz you know I got the job !!

Following the interview, in late December, they informed me that I was successful and requested 3 work references and all 3 of them were contacted.

Then in late January, after my follow-up email I was asked to submit a police clearance certificate.

Once the results of that were submitted to the City, I was finally extended an offer in 2nd week of February and officially started on 14th February 2023.

During the time, I waited to start with the City of Winnipeg, I worked a seasonal position at St. Vital Mall from October to December. This job kept me busy and provided some extra income while I navigated the lengthy hiring process.

Job duties

My main job duty was to answer calls from registrants requesting to book trips. As customer service reps, we did not do any dispatching but only booking trips in a system on their requested date, time and location. This was like 98% of the job. The rest included reporting any incidents or complaints and answering any general questions about the service.

This was not like any typical contact center job. We did not answer calls from random customers. They were registered clients and only called to book trips, cancel trips, ask questions about their trips and report incidents. The job was relatively stress-free, with repetitive tasks that made the work straightforward and manageable.

Shifts

I was a part-time regular/permanent employee so I had to work 20 hours. Yes, HAD TO.

Unlike most jobs, our shifts were not according to our availability however, they would create shift blocks that worked for the contact center and then we would send our preferred blocks.

For example, I chose the one which was Saturday to Wednesday 6:00pm to 10:00pm. Thursday, Friday off. (I worked 7-3:30 at Walmart Tuesday to Saturday)

Same applied to regular Full time employees with a 35 hour week schedule.

For casual employees though, shifts were given according to the availability with no minimum hour guarantee.

I was quite happy to have a fixed schedule, as I knew exactly how my weeks were going to look and I could plan other activities accordingly. (Which let's be real, I really didn't have any time left for!)

My favorite Benefit

Free transit bus pass !!! (Only for transit employees not other departments) We were given a bus pass which exempted us from paying anything when using the city bus services. And since I did not have a car, it was a pretty good benefit.

Did I have a lot of time to be travelling around in buses and going places? No, lol. But, it was still nice to know that whenever I did need to travel, I don't have to worry about paying for it.

And, we also got paid sick hours after probation period. The probation period was 1040 regular hours served.

What did I enjoy about this job?

Remote !!! We were not expected to work in the office only until recently when a new system was introduced. That too only for a couple shifts so that we can understand the system better and get a good training.

Oh, and the initial training was in person for one week and then remote for the rest.

So, in 1 year 7 months, I only went to the office for a total of 7 days. (As far as I remember)

We would receive a 30seconds - 1 minute gap between calls and if there were no calls, we were not expected to do anything. Which was great on slower days when we didn’t receive many calls.

We had Team Leads active at all times to help and support with queries and concerns.

Fixed schedule. Always a plus !

What did I not like about this job?

Less flexibility with shifts. Not too many employees to switch shifts with if needed.

Other than that, it was perfect.

Now, why did I quit??

If you have ready my previous blog about my jobs you know that I worked as Personnel Manager at Walmart and I had a pretty much fixed schedule. And thus, I was able to stick to a fixed schedule with the city as well.

If you haven’t read that blog, go now!! 'My 12 jobs roles explored'

Now that you are caught up on my journey, here is a good news:

I recently got promoted to Compliance Lead at Walmart (Yayy!!), and with this position, I no longer have a fixed schedule. I support the Assistant Manager and am expected to do a variety of shifts.

So, now I can no longer pick up a shift block with the city and stick to it.

Did I think of going full time with city instead and leaving Walmart ? Yes.

However, I did not see myself growing enough with city as I see with Walmart. City gives promotions and opportunities based on seniority as it is a union. However, at Walmart your performance and values are appreciated and considered, regardless of how long you have been with the company.

With my position at Walmart I was also developing new skills. And there are so many opportunities of growth. I can also move to any other city and get a transfer if required.

Every day is a new day which was not the case with the city. Working with city was doing the same thing over and over again. Even in other departments with higher pay, the jobs are quite monotonous. So, no fun at all!

Aannndd, I had been working two jobs from a long time now. So, I really needed a break. I am not going to look for a second job now.

I have started to work on my artist side again, and have been painting and drawing! Checkout my Instagram @artbavleen .

Plus, I am studying right now as well. (Human Resources from Red River College). And, I have this blog to run!!

Let’s not forget that I also volunteer at the Canadian Red Cross. (If you didn’t know that, read my blog on my experience 'My experience volunteering with the Canadian Red Cross'.)

So, as you can tell, I have my hands full. I realized it was time to lighten my load and focus on what truly excites me.

And thus, I decided to resign from a permanent long term secure government job.