Bob Bromley

Thanks, Mr. Chair. That certainly explains it. I recall now. Thanks for that reminder. I see we’re nearing the end here. Was there a plan to move some of the department’s staff and programs to the Department of Finance this year or am I thinking of another department? My memory is stretching. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I’m sure I’ll find out soon when that will be happening.

In the process of reorganizing divisions or departments or sections or whatever, positions sometimes get deleted within the government, and I’m concerned about a situation where an employee in a position might be assured one day that they’re secure and then with an about-face by the government their position is designated as affected shortly thereafter. Are there standards that must be met here, and what recourse does an employee have when their employer goes back on their word such as in such a situation?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Those are all the questions I had. I appreciate that information. I guess I would note some of these things are meant to be funded I think out of the vacant positions. Obviously, we have over 600 vacant positions to be staffed and inactive that are funded on any one day. That’s a lot of moola. We know that those dollars are being used for many of these things, so if they are funded specifically on top of that, as well, I think there needs to be some real clarity in reporting and evaluation on those fronts. I will leave it at that comment. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thanks to the deputy minister for that information. I didn’t get my statistic again, but I think I heard that it’s not a reliable statistic anymore. Perhaps we don’t have any statistics that indicate our succession with all these tools to deliver succession planning. Forty years is great in one way, but in another way people may not be able to retire, and I think we are hearing that across this great country, and there’s a possibility that the types of policies we are putting in place are failing people and their interest in retiring early and moving on to other...

I’ll leave it at that. Obviously, the increase is more than a PY, but perhaps we will get the details as we go. Mahsi.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to follow up a little bit on succession planning, which I think this division is largely responsible for. This has been highlighted for a number of years now and our workforce has been aging, basically, as I understand it. I think we had a significant proportion of employees, something like 20 percent or maybe much more than that that were within five years of retiring. What is the current trend on that measure, whatever it is? Thank you.

Thank you very much for that response. Just on the negotiating tables that are active today, has there been a change, or are we still chugging along with roughly the same number? I don’t know if that information is public. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just to be sure, I’m not sure that this information was included, but in addition to these active positions, are there unreported inactive positions and if so and they’re not funded, is the intent to delete those so that we’re not having to continue to manage those empty and apparently nebulous positions?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. The Premier stated in his opening remarks that the GNWT is now the lead in land negotiations. I’m wondering if I can get a little more explanation on this. I understand this is a result of devolution.

How has our role changed in negotiations and how is the federal role changed in terms of lands, or generally for the federal government, I suppose? Mahsi.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I hope the Premier doesn’t think that he thinks for me, but I would like to ask our reluctant Premier my last question here.

There is currently a petition on the Legislative Assembly website. Could the Premier please reassure our employees that they will not face any recriminations if they wish to sign that petition? It’s not criticizing the government; it’s asking the government for action.