Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, does the Minister of Finance have any timelines for when a new collective agreement will be signed between the Government of the Northwest Territories and UNW? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister responsible for Finance.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the collective agreement between the union and the Government of the Northwest Territories did expire in March, March 31st of 2023. I don't have a set timeline. We go through the bargaining process which is not necessarily a strict timeline in and of itself. But it is a priority, certainly for the Government of the Northwest Territories, I'm confident for the union one as well. Obviously, the wildfires and evacuations have made some challenges to everyone's schedules, but it does remain a priority. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, according to a July 2023 UNW press release, the Government of the Northwest Territories has expressed desire to have a new collective agreement in place before the territorial election this fall. Does the Minister anticipate that a new collective agreement will be signed before election day on November 14th? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the parties did begin the negotiations in March of 2023. Again, this summer season has brought quite a number of unexpected challenges and emergencies to everyone's feet. But, again, I do want to assure that the GNWT and the union do continue to have discussions. They've been in contact even throughout the evacuations. I know the department has appreciated the opportunity to be engaged, not necessarily about negotiations, but even just as a resource to be able to maintain the contact and the line of communications. All that said, though, I don't expect an agreement will be possible before election day, again, just given some of the disruptions that we've had. But there's a process in place now, and the parties are, I'm confident, certainly from the part of the GNWT, confident to pursue a collective agreement in due course. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister provide the House with an update in general terms on the status of negotiations for a new collective agreement? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I'm always a bit hesitant to say too much in the House, and it's not for want of wanting to reassure the public service of the importance of this and certainly of their value. Right now more than ever, many public servants were asked to do much more over the last few months under very difficult circumstances. They really are what makes a lot of what anything the government does possible. So certainly wanting to give that reassurance. There is at this point, the stage we're at, Mr. Speaker, is that the parties are going to have a mediator appointed to the process and meeting with going through that process of having a mediator, meeting with the mediator and, again, once that there is a process for that. Everything is done in accordance with the Public Service Act. It may seem a bit slow but, again, at this point, I am confident that the process is being followed, that everyone is committed to it, both sides are committed to it, and we really do want to see a positive outcome. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Thebacha.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister confirm that the forthcoming new collective agreement will be fair and favourable to ordinary workers? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, that really does go to the real heart and the purpose of having the process that we're in, of having that process laid out as it is, to ensure that it does bring us to a place that we have agreements that are fair, that do, you know, reflect and respect the role of the public service and the Government of the Northwest Territories and that ensures that we have a sustainable contract to provide to our public servants over the longterm and in a way that is reasonable. So all of those ideals and all of those values remain unchanged. Again, I believe we are we're committed to seeing this process through fairly and, again, I am confident that with the process that we're underway and that both parties will be able to reach an agreement. You know, Mr. Speaker, we certainly have monitored closely the challenges over the last year and many public service agreements that have been reached across the country. It's been a difficult year. But, again, we've been watching that closely, and I'm confident with that in hand that we'll be in a position to come to an agreement in due course. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.
