Mr. Speaker, I have a return to Written Question 17-16(5), asked by Ms. Bisaro on February 4, 2011, to the Honourable Jackson Lafferty, Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, regarding Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative.
What amount is identified in the 2010-11 budget for the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative?
The amount identified for the Aboriginal Student Achievement, or ASA, Initiative in the 2010-11 budget is $1.3 million.
What amount is identified in the 2011-12 budget for the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative?
The amount identified for the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative in the 2011-12 budget is $1.8 million.
Provide a breakdown of these funds showing
the activities this funding as been / is being / will be used for;
the amount for each activity;
the community(ies) where it will be spent.
Later today, at the appropriate time, I will table Aboriginal Student Achievement 2010-11 and 2011-12 that provides a funding breakdown for this initiative in fiscal years 2010-11 and 2011-12. Funding is provided on a community basis for some but not all ASA activities. In 2010-11, $10,000 per community was allocated for attendance projects.
For 2011-12, funding for new school/community libraries has been identified for potentially five communities. Only communities that do not currently have public libraries and apply for this funding are eligible to receive it. Only after applications have been received and assessed will it be possible to know which communities will actually receive this funding. The allocation shows $38,000 per community for the salary of a part-time librarian; operation and maintenance to enable the school library to also serve as a public library, accessible some evenings and at weekends; $67,000 in total for travel associated with site visits and training; and $298,000 for library materials, and processing and shipping of literacy materials to eligible communities.
How are the activities being evaluated?
The first phase of ASA included attendance projects, a public education campaign on attendance, and cultural orientation for teachers. Overall student attendance in NWT schools is being monitored to evaluate the impact of the public education campaign. Later today, at the appropriate time, I will table Aboriginal Student Achievement Project Proposal 2010-2011, which includes the evaluation form to be completed for each attendance project. The cultural orientation for teachers has been reported on by the school boards and this will continue.
The ASA Initiative Logic Model developed at the start of the initiative forms the basis for the evaluation of the ASA Initiative. Later today, at the appropriate time, I will table the Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative Logic Model.
Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Item 10, replies to opening address. Item 11, petitions. Item 12, reports of standing and special committees. Item 13, reports of committee on the review of bills. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to report to the Assembly that the Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure has reviewed Bill 16, An Act to Amend the Dog Act. The committee wishes to report that Bill 16 is ready for consideration in Committee of the Whole as amended and reprinted. Thank you.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following two documents entitled GNWT Response to Committee Report 4-16(5), Report on the Review of the 2008-2009 Annual Report of the Languages Commissioner; and GNWT Response to Committee Report 6-16(5), Report on the Review of the Auditor General on Education in the Northwest Territories.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following documents entitled GNWT Response to Committee Report 5-16(5), Report on the Review of the 2008-2009 Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner.
Also, Mr. Speaker, further to my Return to Written Question 17-16(5), I wish to table the following three documents entitled Aboriginal Student Achievement 2010-2011 and 2011-2012; Aboriginal Student Achievement Project Proposal 2010-2011; and Aboriginal Student Achievement Initiative Logic Model. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Bob McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following document entitled Northwest Territories Community Futures Program 2009-2010 Annual Report. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Miltenberger.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following two documents entitled Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 5, 2010-2011; and Supplementary Estimates (Operations Expenditures), No. 3, 2010-2011. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Krutko.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table a document entitled Report re Fiscal and Self-Government Issues in Connection with Devolution, prepared for Richard Nerysoo, president of the Gwich’in Tribal Council in Inuvik, by Peter Eglington and Lew Voytilla, dated January 25, 2011. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Member for Great Slave, Mr. Abernethy.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to table a copy of An Act to Amend the Employment Standards Act from the Government of the Yukon from 2009. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I give notice that on Wednesday, March 2, 2011, I will move the following motion: I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Weledeh, that this Legislative Assembly strongly recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment devise a certificate program to certify elders to teach in NWT schools in time for the start of the new school year in the fall of 2011. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
WHEREAS the vision of the 16th Legislative Assembly is “strong individuals, families and communities sharing the benefits and responsibilities of a unified, environmentally sustainable and prosperous Northwest Territories;”
AND WHEREAS one of the goals of the 16th Legislative assembly is “effective and efficient government” to be achieved, in part, through improved human resource management practices;
AND WHEREAS the Government of the Northwest Territories Public Service Strategic Plan titled “20/20: A Brilliant North” has a goal “to establish a public service that represents our diverse cultures” with a supporting objective to promote the Affirmative Action Policy through “the development and advancement of designated groups;”
AND WHEREAS the government remains committed to a competent public service that is representative of the population it serves;
AND WHEREAS the 2009 Public Service Annual Report indicates that persons with disabilities make up only 0.5 percent of the GNWT workforce;
AND WHEREAS, according to the 2006 Statistics Canada survey, approximately 8.2 percent of the NWT workforce aged 18 to 65 are persons with disabilities;
AND WHEREAS anecdotal evidence consistently shows that persons with disabilities encounter more hiring difficulties than the general population;
NOW THEREFORE I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Kam Lake, that the GNWT develop a reliable, trustworthy and confidential measuring tool to verify the percentage of persons with a disability within the GNWT workforce;
AND FURTHER, that the Government of the Northwest Territories reassess and, if necessary, revise the staffing priorities assigned to the affirmative action groups identified in Section 101 of the GNWT Human Resources Manual to ensure the priority assigned to persons with disabilities relative to the other groups is in keeping with the spirit and intent of the Affirmative Action Policy and is adequate to support the goal of a representative public service;
AND FURTHERMORE, that the GNWT develop a plan to ensure that the percentage of persons with a disability employed by this government be maintained at, or increased to, no less than 5 percent of the total workforce within five years of the date of this motion;
AND FURTHERMORE, that the government report back to this Assembly within 120 days as to the government’s plan to achieve the goals of this motion, and each five years thereafter.
Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. To the motion. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I bring this motion to the floor in my continuing effort to improve the prospects of persons with disabilities for employment within the GNWT.
At the moment, as I have stated, the known percentage of persons with a disability in our territorial government workforce is just 0.5 percent. It is quite likely that that number in actually is much higher, but, as is often mentioned by the Minister of Human Resources, our statistics rely on GNWT employees self-identifying as a person with a disability. The first action of this motion seeks to change that. It seeks to establish a reliable, trustworthy, confidential tool to measure the number of persons with a disability in our workforce. Without an accurate measurement of the number of persons with a disability, we really don’t know how to design an improvement program. I am somewhat surprised that an analysis to that effect has not already been done.
The second action of the motion asks the government to reassess the hiring priority lists that we now use for affirmative action. This motion does not ask for an evaluation of the Affirmative Action Policy. Opening up that policy is fraught with difficulties and complications, but the priority lists are not in the policy; they are laid out in the Human Resources Manual. We can examine those lists with a view to see if they are still relevant, to see if they are still achieving their intended purpose.
We do give some priority to persons with disabilities via these lists, but I believe it is not enough and that change is needed. Let me give you an example. Consider a job competition between two P1 candidates who have been evaluated and are considered equals for the competition; that is they both have the same skills and experience. One of them is a person with a disability, but according to GNWT policy and procedure, that P1 with a disability does not have any priority over the other non-disabled person.
Research indicates that persons with a disability have a much harder time finding and gaining employment than those who do not. Presumably that is why the Affirmative Action Policy lists persons with a disability as a priority for GNWT hiring. This motion recommends that that priority be recognized and that the person with a disability in my example be given preference and rated higher than the other P1 candidate. But the current language in the HR manual precludes that.
Mr. Speaker, I have to ask: when was the last time that our priority list was thoroughly evaluated? I have to emphasize the word “thoroughly.” When have we undertaken an honest, open and extensive review? It is time to take a long, hard look at those lists.
There are at least two changes that I believe are necessary. Firstly, we have two priority lists, Mr. Speaker, one for management in non-traditional occupations competitions and another for all other competitions. But persons with a disability in the management in non-traditional occupations priority list are rated lower in priority than women. They should have at least equal priority, in my view. As well, we need to amend our procedures to allow priorities to be cumulative, as was evident in the example I gave. If it is the goal of this government to have a representative public service, then the Department of Human Resources and this government must consider whether or not the current priority lists encourage and enable the GNWT to achieve that goal.
Mr. Speaker, I do want to acknowledge and recognize the efforts of the current Minister of Human Resources and the staff of the Department of Human Resources to increase the number of persons with a disability in the GNWT workforce. I appreciate that they have recognized the deficiency in our numbers and they are taking steps to try and fix it. I have been pleased to see some of the changes that have taken place in the last year or so. With that said, there is more that must be done to really affect the change that is so necessary. Once an analysis is done, then the Human Resources 20/20 plan can be amended to implement any indicated change. That is what this motion asks for.
In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, I hope my colleagues agree with me that persons with a disability deserve a higher hiring priority than what we now give them. I hope my colleagues will vote in support of this motion with me. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. To the motion. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have thought about the motion for the last little while and my honourable colleague proposed it. I do have to say that I will not be supporting this motion. Aboriginal people strive. It took time the Affirmative Action Policy for this government to start hiring Aboriginal people that we had to put this policy in place to force government to hire Aboriginal people. I don’t believe that we have to... I think this motion, despite my honourable colleague’s intentions, will open up the P1 policy to all kinds of different weakening of our Affirmative Action Policy. We are not a representative workforce at any rate; we are still at 30 percent. I believe the Affirmative Action Policy should stay the way it is. There is strong human rights legislation that protects persons with disabilities and age, et cetera. I believe there is enough federal legislation to cover that off. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. To the motion. The honourable Minister of Human Resources, Mr. Bob McLeod.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Employability is part of Go To of 20/20: A Brilliant North, Public Service Strategic Plan. This goal makes it a priority to increase the number of persons with disabilities in the Government of the Northwest Territories workforce and includes initiatives to encourage current Government of the Northwest Territories employees to self-declare that they are persons with disabilities. The Government of the Northwest Territories Advisory Committee on Employability, we call it GACE, and the Department of Human Resources has developed a draft survey for Government of the Northwest Territories employees. The purpose of this survey is to establish the number of GNWT employees with disabilities. The survey will also aim to establish the number of employees accessing workplace accommodations or disability supports. Our target is to have the survey out in the first quarter of the new fiscal year.
The Government of the Northwest Territories is committed to the Affirmative Action Policy and increasing the representation of the designated groups identified in the policy in order to create a public service which reflects the diverse culture of the Northwest Territories.
The 16th Assembly is committed to supporting the Affirmative Action Policy, which gives first hiring priority to indigenous Aboriginals. The Department of Human Resources cannot change hiring priorities that have the potential to negatively impact Aboriginals and the government’s commitment to increase their numbers in the public service. The Department of Human Resources believes that our employability initiatives will better fulfill the spirit and intent of the Affirmative Action Policy and changing the hiring priority. The Government of the Northwest Territories Advisory Committee on Employability has been created to strengthen relationships with government and non-government organizations, including the unions. The committee provides recommendations aimed at increasing representation of persons with disabilities within the public service. Work to date includes the development of a communication strategy to promote the Government of the Northwest Territories Advisory Committee on Employability in advance of a disability survey.
The communication strategy will be inclusive to ensure that the message of diversity and inclusion of all people and the Government of the Northwest Territories is promoted. This department is also in the development of a Disabilities Awareness and Inclusion Training Program which will be delivered throughout the public service. This training is scheduled to take place in the new fiscal year and will be available via face-to-face training and Internet-based e-training opportunities.
A diversity officer and a duty to accommodate officer are the newly created positions in 2010. They will play important roles working with managers and employees with disabilities and creating an awareness program about inclusion in the workplace and disabilities awareness. The department will review recruitment strategies for persons with disabilities based on market research and current technologies in the new fiscal year. The department is developing a framework to increase the representation of persons with disabilities in the Government of the Northwest Territories. The Department of Human Resources recognizes the percentage of Government of the Northwest Territories employees with disabilities is below the percentage of the Northwest Territories workforce with disabilities. The objective of the employability goal is to match or exceed that percentage in order to better establish a public service which reflects the public it serves.
Finally, we have already committed to a regular reporting schedule of progress on our initiatives under 20/20 and believe we are making progress under all of the goals of the motion. As this is their recommendation to government, Cabinet will be abstaining from the vote. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. McLeod. To the motion. The honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe very strongly in supporting the community and I think that this motion reflects concerns out there that I’ve heard that employable offers and opportunities are very few and thin. That being said, Mr. Speaker, I also recognize the initiatives taken on by this government to help close those gaps for people with disabilities and I strongly support the efforts that government has been making to date. Is that gap wide? I think it’s still a significant barrier for many, but I believe in my heart that people are trying to meet the government half way in trying to find ways to close that. I’ll continue to advocate for people with disabilities and in my heart I feel very strongly that the government should be opening up every opportunity they can to help folks.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. To the motion. I’ll go to the mover of the motion for closing comments, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I’d like to thank my colleagues for their remarks. I don’t know, Mr. Speaker, how many other ways I can say it; I am not asking or this motion does not ask for the policy to be opened. This motion asks for the priority hiring lists, which are not within the Affirmative Action Policy, to be opened. Those are listed in the Human Resource Manual. I don’t believe that’s a policy as a policy approved by Cabinet. I don’t think it is a policy that was approved by Cabinet.
I’d like to also point out to my colleagues that I am not advocating that a P2 with a disability have a higher priority than a P1. I am asking that people with a disability receive a higher priority than we currently now give them. In my example, the P1 with the disability would have a higher priority than a P1 without a disability, and I would think all Members would want to try and encourage more people with a disability to be hired into our workforce.
I appreciate the Minister’s remarks and, as I mentioned, I appreciate the work that the department is doing, I just don’t think it’s quite enough. Without having seen the survey, which is going to come forward, I really have difficulty believing that a survey is going to do the same thing as what I call a reliable, confidential, trustworthy tool to measure the PWDs within our workforce. I would hope that’s what it is, but what I’m referencing and what I think we need is something which is totally confidential and totally trustworthy, and I think many of the members in our workforce don’t believe that by self identifying that it’s going to be a confidential move.
I’d like to comment on the Minister’s remarks that the duty to accommodate officer is going to be assisting departments and is going to be doing some help, and, unfortunately, the example provided by my colleague last week in terms of the duty to accommodate in a competition at the hospital is proving that there are a few things yet to be gained. So I think an evaluation of the priorities that this government puts on persons with disabilities is justified and I encourage my colleagues to vote with me on this. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Ms. Bisaro.
The Member is seeking a recorded vote. All those in favour of the motion please stand.
Ms. Bisaro, Mr. Bromley, Mr. Abernethy, Mr. Ramsay, Mrs. Groenewegen, Mr. Hawkins.
All those opposed to the motion, please stand.
Mr. Krutko, Mr. Menicoche, Mr. Beaulieu, Mr. Jacobson, Mr. Yakeleya.
All those abstaining from the motion, please stand.
Mr. Lafferty; Ms. Lee; Mr. Miltenberger; Mr. Roland; Mr. McLeod, Deh Cho; Mr. McLeod, Inuvik Twin Lakes; Mr. McLeod, Yellowknife South.
