Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to follow up my questions and my statement with the Minister of Public Works and Services. I know Public Works and Services doesn’t control the current facility, and my first question to that Minister is: Why is Public Works and Services so interested in the new facility now, Mr. Speaker?
Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. Minister of Public Works and Services, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There was direction given back in 2010. Any GNWT buildings coming on would be looked at under the consolidated maintenance program which is run by Public Works. This is a new building coming on stream so Public Works will be maintaining it. Thank you.
I’d like to ask this Minister why we haven’t seen a plan going forward, how this maintenance is going to roll out, what his department is going to take over and what the Department of Health is going to take over. Why is it taking so long to get this plan completed? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you. One of the key factors is that the staff at Hay River Health and Social Services is under a different union agreement than the GNWT staff. Although the buildings have been transferred under that consolidated program, all the buildings that were at one time ownership of the Health and Social Services Authority in Hay River are now GNWT buildings. So, what has happened is that we need to be able to have a discussion not only with Health and Social Services and Public Works that would be providing the maintenance but also with HR labour relations to ensure that we’re going into an area where there’s another union agreement in place for people providing current services that we do this in a phased approach. For now we’re talking about the hospital; in the future we’ll be phasing in the rest of the buildings that are with Hay River Health and Social Services. Thank you.
I guess that’s to my point; the complexity of this and the fact that we need a plan of this is what Public Works and Services is going to do, this is what Health is going to do, and then we can bring that to the union and see how this is going to roll out. Right now we don’t have a plan.
When will the two departments get together, have a plan and bring it to the MLAs and the union?
The Department of Public Works and Services, Department of Health and Social Services, HR and the Hay River Health and Social Services will have a plan on the disposition of the employees, whether they’re coming over to work for Public Works and maintain the hospital, or if they’re going to remain there for a period of time. Overall, we will have a plan in place before the new hospital is open. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Bouchard.
As I indicated, these are people’s jobs, people’s lives that are on the line, so they would like to hear this sooner than later.
My question is: Can we get this resolved as soon as possible? Not a set date, not when it opens, but as soon as possible. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
We’ll have this done. The intention, of course, is to have the building open this summer, so within the next several months. We will have a plan prior to then, so we can talk to the departments. I will talk to HR and Public Works. The Minister of Health and Social Services is going to have a discussion with his staff, and we’ll put a plan together as soon as possible. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.
