Mr. Chair, it has been a long day. We did read it in the 21 page report earlier. Being new to the government, I do feel that there are a lot of areas that needed to be fixed. We wouldn’t have had to read a 21 page report with 21 recommendations into this House if the Department of Education, Culture and Employment were on top of things. I would have rather read it in a five page report or no report at all that said everything was good. We had a lot of unsatisfactory areas that deal with a lot of people that have come to my office and we actually had people in the gallery who had to express interest on this. With the low literacy rates that we already have in the Northwest Territories that contribute to our poverty, there is no way we could have deemed that report read, hoping that somebody is going to read this report to some of our clientele. That is ridiculous.
I will make one general comment here today on all the motions. They do need to be addressed. People are still living in poverty. We are burning out our workers, our CSOs, and the decision of committee this morning was to read it because we felt that we as a committee had to be accountable, transparent, had to let residents of the NWT hear what was in the report so that they can keep us accountable as well.
The committee has worked hard on this. Staff has worked hard on this. Just moving forward, I just needed to make the general comment on all of our areas. The report itself has a lot of really good information in there. This is something that we do owe to the residents of the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. To the motion.
Question.
Question is being called.
---Carried
Mr. Yakeleya.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment report the turnover rate for its client service officers annually as a performance measure in the department’s business plan. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called.
---Carried
Mr. Nadli.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment prioritize the establishment of safe workplaces for its front-line Income Security workers, bearing in mind the need to retain a welcoming atmosphere for clients, and the report on client service officers’ satisfaction with safety measures annually as a performance measure in the department’s business plan.
Thank you, Mr. Nadli. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called.
---Carried
Ms. Bisaro.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment report to the Standing Committee on Social Programs on the use of voucher systems for income assistance in Northwest Territories communities, noting locations, numbers of clients, features of the systems, monitoring by the department, performance measures and evaluation results. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called.
---Carried
Mr. Moses.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment provide support to income security appellants at least until the hearing, in the case of both new and existing income assistance clients and for ongoing student financial assistance clients. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called.
---Carried
Mr. Yakeleya.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment considers options to ensure that Senior Home Heating Subsidy recipients have the opportunity to use their fuel subsidy amount, and that the department presents needs options to the Standing Committee on Social Programs within the 2013-2014 fiscal year. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called.
---Carried
Mr. Nadli.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment clarify policies, procedures and guidelines outlining Income Security Program delivery requirements and how to meet them, and ensure staff understand and are following these procedures and guidelines. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Nadli. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called.
---Carried
Ms. Bisaro.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that as the Department of Education, Culture and Employment introduces its revised Child Care User Subsidy within the Income Assistance program, it should develop clear guidelines that are consistent with program requirements and clearly communicate these requirements to front-line staff and potential applicants. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called.
---Carried
Mr. Moses.
Mr. Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment ensure that regional managers and supervisors formally monitor client files. This monitoring should include regularly scheduled reviews of client files as well as the use of standard templates in all regions to help ensure a consistent approach. In cases where monitoring uncovers deficiencies or other issues, regional managers and supervisors should follow up formally. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. The motion is in order. To the motion.
