Frieda Martselos

Mr. Speaker, Fort Smith is home to the oldest school infrastructure in the NWT. Both Joseph Burr Tyrrell elementary and the PWK high school are each over 60 years old. JBT was built in 1958 and PWK was built in 1956, making them 63 and 65 years old respectively.

Mr. Speaker, I spoke with various community members, including residential school survivors, elders, teachers, parents, and students about the condition and health of JBT and of PWK high school. Overall, the sentiment is that both schools are quite old and require constant maintenance to address routine issues such as ventilation, mold...

Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that Section 22(2) be amended to only require notice to an authority of a refusal to investigate in the event that notice has already been provided to the authority, that an investigation will take place under Section 24. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that Section 23 be amended to remove reference to the Director of Human Resources, and, further, that the reference to the conflict of interest commissioner be amended to Integrity Commissioner. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Madam Chair, I move that this Committee recommends that the definition of "authorities" and the schedule be amended to use language similar to that found in the Ombudsmen Act Yukon and that a further subclause expressively include the Housing Association as established with the Societies Act. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document: NWT Schools Capital Needs Assessment Summary, Department of Education, Culture, and Employment, April 22, 2003. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, hopefully in my past two statements gives insight to the hiring processes. Would the Minister consider a complete renewal strategy within the Government of the Northwest Territories for the human resource department? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, does the Minister believe in the truth and reconciliation in changing this culture of 'who you know and not what you know'? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, between 2016 and 2020, there was a total of 303 appeals to Human Resources hiring decisions; however, only 17 of those appeals were upheld, and all appeals all together were denied in 20192020. Does the Minister believe these statistics are fair and are not indicative of broader issues with the appeal process in Human Resources? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, does the Minister recognize that hiring staff have sometimes retaliated against certain individuals based on the applicant and employee's association with certain people whom hiring staff doesn't know or like personally? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, there is an unspoken culture embedded within human resources in our government. It can be hard to see and identify if you're not looking in the right places. There seems to be a punitive side of human resources, because when employees try standing up for themselves by speaking out about issues they see or by appealing a job hire by the Government of the Northwest Territories, they get branded and blacklisted. Outspoken people become undervalued, discarded, and frowned upon by hiring personnel and, therefore, shut out from the system itself. It's like an unbreakable cycle or a...