Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the intent of this process was the reclassification of the new job descriptions for alcohol and drug workers and mental health workers to recognize at long last that the alcohol and drug workers who have worked for many years had worked at very low wages without any of the benefits that accrue to other employees that were permanent employees for health and social services authorities. The intent is to train those workers that need training, the intent is to roll them over, upgrade them if necessary, do an analysis of their experience and education, a prior learning assessment it's called, to see where they fit on the new pay scale, and to commit to training them so that they in fact are capable of better doing the jobs and finally get access to the benefits. Those positions that are vacant are going to be advertised. Some areas have already started. There have been people in positions that have already been appointed to their new jobs. So, Mr. Speaker, this would be moving at different paces, depending on the authorities, their staff, who's there and the vacancies that they do have. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it's good to hear from the Minister that something is happening out there, but we don't seem to really see any activity taking place. The Minister stated the Inuvik Regional Health and Social Services Authority is working closely with the community of Aklavik to find a qualified counsellor who will meet the needs of the community on a long-term basis. I would like to ask the Minister, can you tell me exactly what are the timelines you're looking at, and if you are advertising for these other positions, why couldn't you be advertising for a similar position in Aklavik?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I indicated previously, my understanding is that the officials from the Inuvik Health and Social Services Authority were to be in Aklavik this week, sit down with the community to discuss the best way to move ahead on the staffing of the alcohol and drug and mental health positions that are there. Once that is determined, then if it's a contract, if it's going to be a permanent staff of the authority located in Aklavik, then the job description is there and the staffing process is ready to begin. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, from that response from the Minister I get the feeling that Aklavik is being treated differently than other communities in the Northwest Territories when it comes to mental health and drug workers. On one hand, you're saying you're going out, you're advertising, you're trying to find these people and making sure that they're qualified to take these positions; but on the other hand you're saying your people from the Inuvik Health Board are going to go into Aklavik and consult if they can basically offer a service to the community of Aklavik. So I'd like to ask the Minister are there two lines of treatment here, one for communities that have the program and one for communities that don't? Do we have a system in place that's consistent for all communities?

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my preference would be that mental health workers, community wellness workers, alcohol and drug workers would all become employees of the authority in the region in which they work, that they would become employees and have access to benefits, pensions and leave that they may not have access to now. That would be my preference. The final decision has to be negotiated with the communities and the authorities, because in some situations they are employees of bands and they have contracts with NGOs. So we have to work through those areas. In a lot of cases, in the majority, they are staffed and they're just going to be upgraded and their pay increased. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Your final supplementary, Mr. Krutko.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it seems at times it takes forever to have anything done in this House. I would like to ask the Minister again, do we have a timeline on exactly when you see these positions being filled in our communities and give the comfort to the employees who are presently there to know that their job is secure, that they will have to possibly take some training, that they will not be fired going through this process, that we have such a stringent system in place, classification and qualification, that they will not need it and most of them may be out of a job. So I would like to ask the Minister exactly on the timelines, when can these people get some comfort that there will be job security and they know that those positions will be signed on, they will have a job at the end of the day and they won't have to be laid off? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, your final answer.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would be more than willing to say in this House, and I will say in this House, the intent of this exercise is not to fire existing staff. The intent of this exercise is to recognize specifically in the area of the alcohol and drug workers that they have worked long and hard for years for very little pay and often no benefits, no job security, or limited job security for the people in their community. We have gone to this Assembly and got funds to increase their pay. We've worked with authorities to be able to, where they're not already employees, make them employees so that they can get salaries at the reclassified position with all the accrued and contingent benefits that would go with that. The intent is to recognize the work they do. The intent is where they need further training to provide them with that training. Thank you.

Mahsi, Mr. Minister. The time allocated for question period has expired. Item 7, written questions. The chair recognizes the honourable Member for Hay River North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to go back to item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery.

The honourable Member is seeking unanimous consent to return to item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Are there any nays? There are no nays, Mr. Delorey. What is your wish?