As the Minister of Lands and Minister of ITI have pointed out before this House, because their budgets were reviewed, the development assessment process we are putting in place, now that we’re going to be the regulator after April 1st, sees an integrated cooperative approach between the two departments chaired by the Minister of Lands. We will do the work on fracking and we will make sure that when it is put out for public feedback, we will consider the Member’s suggestion. We’ll be looking for feedback from people across the North but especially where it’s impacting in the Sahtu as well as the industry. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This past fall was the first time the Department of Transportation extended the ferry service in Tsiigehtchic. I’d like to ask the Minister of Transportation, when will the work begin to repair the Louis Cardinal ferry for service in June? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Blake. Minister of Transportation, Mr. Beaulieu.
Mr. Speaker, I have talked to the department and the ferry will be ready to go when it’s in the water. It will be fully repaired and fully functional. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to ask the Minister, what was the estimated cost of damages to the vessel this fall? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you. We have not completed a complete evaluation and cost estimate on the damage that may have been incurred by the Louis Cardinal ferry during the time we were attempting to continue to run it round season. We did put $400,000 worth of capital into the ferry in order to make it possible to run all season. Thank you.
Will the department also be repairing the Merv Hardie this year? Thank you.
I’m not expecting to put the Merv Hardie into service, so anything that may be done with the Merv Hardie will only be done when we plan to put it into service. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Blake.
Thank you. I recall last year the Minister was saying that the ferry would be ready for replacement if an emergency was to happen, so that ferry should be operational.
I’d like to ask the Minister, will the Minister replace the Louis Cardinal vessel with the Merv Hardie? Thank you.
Thank you. Indications tell us that by evaluating the Merv Hardie versus the Louis Cardinal that there would be no benefits gained by moving the Merv Hardie down river to Tsiigehtchic to that crossing. So at this time there is no plan to replace the Louis Cardinal with the Merv Hardie. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement I talked about the job opportunities that are being denied the public, for goodness sakes.
On the GNWT’s website there were only 71 postings, half were in Yellowknife and half were outside of Yellowknife.
Where are the remainder of the 500 jobs that the Finance Minister proclaims to the public that they are actively pursuing? I’m asking the Minister of Human Resources, where are the other jobs? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Minister of Human Resources, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As of February 17, 2014, of the 571 vacant positions, 156 of them were filled and the other ones are in the various processes, currently being filled by transfer assignment or casual while we’re trying to find an incumbent, they were recently vacant or at some point been through the interview stage or the advertising stage or the offer stage. So they’re at the various stages and it would not be possible for us to advertise and fill 571 jobs at one time. Thank you.
What the Minister failed to say was how many new job openings were created while these 156 jobs are in the process of being filled. At the same time, the Minister says he can’t advertise the jobs because it would be impossible. Why? Well, I don’t know because, my goodness, how do you fill the jobs if you don’t advertise? So can the Minister answer that interesting quagmire he has now found himself in?
Thank you. The number of 571 is a snapshot on October 31, 2013, and that’s when those vacancies were positioned. However, throughout the year we advertise the jobs and fill the jobs. So, yes, I’m positive that there have been more vacancies since October 31st, but we won’t know that number until we take another snapshot six months after that. We’re taking the PeopleSoft system and we’re taking it off the PeopleSoft on a semi-annual basis. Thank you.
You would think it would be a very paramount job of the Minister of Human Resources to know exactly how many vacancies we have, not to wait to each quarter or semi-quarter, who knows how you want to paint it.
Why doesn’t the Minister, realizing how important this issue is, while the House is sitting, why doesn’t he know how many jobs are vacant because these are rolling vacancies if someone gets hired, somebody changes their mind and doesn’t want to work there anymore. So we have an average vacancy built up throughout the Northwest Territories government at all times.
Why doesn’t the Minister know what’s going on with these vacancies and about how many are available? Thank you.
Thank you. The PeopleSoft system is designed to give us snapshot reports. We use that as a management tool to hire, track, recruit, retain our employees and this was a snapshot that we provided to the House on October 2013 and we’ll do that again in April of 2014. We act accordingly. We continuously are attempting to fill positions. We work with the departments and it’s important for us that we make every effort to fill the vacancies and we do. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If anyone doesn’t know, apparently we use PeopleSoft, because I think it has been said at least seven times if not more. Maybe we should have the PeopleSoft program sitting in one of those seats answering all these questions because if we only have information from October and we don’t get new information until April, that has to be at least six months. This is such an important issue.
What is the Minister going to do to ensure Northerners have current information before them so they can apply for these jobs? Because I can tell you, up and down this Valley, all four corners of the Northwest Territories, people want to work and if nobody knows in that government, in that department where these jobs are, how will Northerners know? What will the Minister do? Thank you.
Thank you. We have recruitment and marketing strategies to fill vacancies. That’s what we’re doing. We’re working with the department. Every effort is being made. PeopleSoft is not actually a person; PeopleSoft is a system that we go to, to capture information from. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. A little bit of order here. Order! Okay, oral questions. The Member for Range Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to follow up on my Member’s statement and I have some questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. I mentioned in my statement I’m looking at an inclusive schooling review that has been mentioned by the Minister a number of times and I think the latest statement by the Minister was that the Education Renewal and Innovation Initiative was going to involve a review of inclusive schooling. So the ERI work that either has taken place already or that is taking place now, I’d like to know whether or not the department has undertaken or will undertake as part of the ERI work, a review of the inclusive schooling funding formula. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Yes, the whole inclusive schooling is part of the ERI that we are moving forward and developing an action plan. We are currently in the process of reviewing the inclusive schooling directive and funding consultation, of course, engaging the education authorities. The review will be completed no later than the end of this year, 2013-14, because we want it to be part of the action plan as we move forward.
So, as I indicated, the education boards and the Northwest Territories Teachers’ Association will be part of the working group. We wanted to involve those individuals and that would have the most positive impact in the communities with all the school boards and the community members. So, yes, we will be reviewing. Mahsi.
Thanks to the Minister. I got a little confused there. The Minister started off saying that they were doing a review and then I think he said that they will do a review, so I’d like a little clarification.
Is the review underway, and if so, who is undertaking that review for the department? Is it an internal review or is it somebody external that is doing the review for the department?
What I said is it is under review. As part of the whole inclusive schooling, it will be part of the education renewal. That’s what I was referring to. Inclusive schooling is currently under review. By 2013-14, the end of this year, we want to have the product at hand. We are, as a department, going through the review process, again, working with the school boards and the superintendents, the NWTTA, through their program support teachers, engaging them and providing recommendations. Those recommendations will be brought forward to my attention and I will be sharing that with the standing committee in due time.
Thanks to the Minister. I’m glad to hear that something’s going to be done by the end of March. I think he said the end of ’13-14, so that’s in about three weeks’ time. I’m very glad to hear that. I didn’t hear an answer to my question of who is doing the review.
Has the department hired a contractor or are they doing the review internally?
When I said no later than the end of 2013-14, I want to bring this back to session in the spring session, the May and June Legislative Assembly. That is my overall target and goals and objectives to deliver that. I have to get back to the Member on who has been hired as a contractor to deliver this review of inclusive schooling as part of the education renewal.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final, short supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thanks to the Minister. I look forward to receiving that information on who is doing the review. The Minister indicates that we’re going to get something in the May/June session, and I appreciate that.
I guess I would like to ask the Minister, if the department has the review completed prior to that, would he circulate the review to Members, particularly the Standing Committee on Social Programs electronically prior to May/June?
Once the information is available to me, then I will be more than willing to share that with the standing committee.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In January the Minister of Transportation accompanied me on a tour of the Mackenzie Delta and while we were in Tsiigehtchic the community asked a question to the department, so I’d like to also ask the same question to the Minister.
Has the department considered starting at 8:00 a.m. until midnight as suggested by the community of Tsiigehtchic?
Thank you, Mr. Blake. The Minister of Transportation, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, we are considering that. We wrote to the contractor. I sent a letter off to the contractor asking if there were any issues or detriments to us following the hours that were suggested by the community of Tsiigehtchic.
A reason a lot of the Members wanted this change in hours was a lot of people are missing their flights to Inuvik because of the delays that happen in the morning.
I’d like to ask the Minister, will these hours be in place this coming spring?
In the letter that I sent to the contractor, it is for this coming season. We had asked them to consider doing it this coming season. We had a very clear explanation from the community why that was an issue. It is sort of the crossing from Tsiigehtchic to both sides of the Mackenzie, as well, so we recognize there are delays there. We’ve put that in the letter and we’re asking that a decision be made for this season.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following document, entitled “Waste Reduction and Recovery Program, Annual Report.” Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Mr. Ramsay.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to table the following document, entitled “2013 Annual Report of the Northwest Territories Public Utilities Board.”
