Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are to the Minister of ITI. When the government and the mining companies signed a socio-economic agreement, they made certain targets and priorities. Why aren’t the mining companies reaching the target of hiring northern at 60 percent? They are only at 37 percent. What is the Minister doing to bring up those numbers so the government can hold to account the mining companies on the agreements they signed to operate in the Northwest Territories?
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Department of ITI is responsible for the socio-economic agreements that are reached with the mining companies, but responsibility for training programs that the Member is speaking of are the responsibility of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment. I work very closely with Minister Lafferty and also with Minister Beaulieu through the Department of Health and Social Services in working with industry to try to find a way to ensure that opportunities for jobs and training accrue to residents here in the Northwest Territories. We need to certainly do a better job at trying to find a way to get more people employed. It is only working with industry that we are going to be able to make some improvements on the numbers that are out there. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, in the Sahtu, as I said, the mining companies don’t really hire people outside the Yellowknife area. The Sahtu is very little. We have to go to Deline, Norman Wells, Inuvik or Yellowknife to get on to the workforce. In front of me I have a list of graduates from the Sahtu. There’s 33 graduates, seven from post-secondary and 26 from the high school.
Can the Minister ask the mining industry if they could make up pick-up points in the Sahtu communities further than what they have right now so that they can increase their mining workforce? We want to go to work. Let’s ask the mining companies to pull up their socks and get going.
Thank you. Those discussions have taken place with the mining companies and, certainly, just recently there’s been a real change to the landscape when it comes to the diamond mines here in the Northwest Territories and perhaps even more change there. I think there’s a real opportunity, given what’s happened here, to ensure that pick-up points and people that want to be employed, that want to work at the mines here in the Northwest Territories have that opportunity. It’s certainly advantageous for the mining companies themselves to have a workforce located here in the Northwest Territories and we’re committed to, again, work with industry to see that happen. Thank you.
Thank you. I’d like to know from the Minister, where are the teeth in our socio-economic agreements. The mining companies have agreed to sign on to a target or a number that they’re going to meet once they want to do business in the Northwest Territories. They’ll say yes, we’ll do this, and they sign on, and after three or four years they don’t meet their targets, they’re coming very close to it, but where are the teeth in the socio-economic agreements that would hold them accountable to say you violated your agreement.
Thank you. I think it really is a two-way street. Industry certainly signs those agreements in good faith with the Government of the Northwest Territories, but we have to ensure that we have the training and education opportunities for people to get the jobs. There’s also a personal responsibility factor that enters into this and people have to take responsibility for themselves, and I’m talking about the abuse of alcohol and drugs, and that is how we are going to see numbers improve when it comes to people being able to be employed here in the Northwest Territories by industry. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Yakeleya.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That’s where we fall short of supporting our people in the Northwest Territories. If they’re going to fall short and you know it, what programs and treatment opportunities do we have for our people so that we do not label them or blame them for the mining companies falling short?
We’re making excuses for the mining companies. What is this government doing to help our people to increase the number, not only in the Yellowknife area but also looking at the whole Northwest Territories? We should be hiring a lot of people right across the North.
Thank you. I’m not here to defend the industry, the mining companies. I think, again, they’ve signed these agreements in good faith. What I’m trying to say is it’s a two-way street. We need to ensure that we have the training, the programs that are available for people and I applaud the work that the Norman Wells Land Corp has taken on themselves in training a workforce there in the Sahtu. But as I mentioned earlier, I work closely with Minister Beaulieu and Minister Lafferty. We understand the challenge. We’re trying to meet that challenge. We meet with the mining presidents on a quarterly basis. These issues have been raised and I want to assure the Member and this House that we are going to continue to move forward to try to address the concerns that the Member has brought up today. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. The Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.
