Debates of February 25, 2005 (day 44)

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the year 2000, a legislative review panel was appointed to recommend changes to the Workers’ Compensation Act and the Safety Act of the Northwest Territories. In 2002, the panel’s report, called “Act Now,” was received by the Ministers for the WCB both here and in Nunavut. Mr. Speaker, it’s interesting to note that after all that time and that profile and expense, that this report was never tabled in this House. The terms of reference provided for a legislative review, and that panel was to also present the views heard by the stakeholders during a very wide-ranging consultation.

There were some 85 recommendations in the Act Now report and the principal recommendation, the number one direction that this panel gave us, Mr. Speaker, was to engage in an operational review of the WCB. Commitments were made to have that done, but we have yet to see anything, Mr. Speaker. The system was seen on an operational view by many, Mr. Speaker, to be an adversarial system between the WCB and injured workers. A feeling was often expressed that the system was not there to work on behalf of injured workers, but rather to protect the bottom line and the fund of the WCB. Workers often felt that they were not treated with respect and, Mr. Speaker, ran into areas of difficulty with medical interpretations, rulings that contradicted medical opinions, things that left injured workers perplexed, Mr. Speaker, and on a never-ending treadmill with the appeals process.

Mr. Speaker, our WCB, in many areas, is a very progressive organization. I am very impressed with the work that it does on behalf of youth and worker safety training and the smoking initiative. But there continues to be, Mr. Speaker, a chronic need for addressing the problems of claims implementation and our appeals mechanism in the WCB. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause