Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, sadly the Northwest Territories has one of the highest rates of persons with addictions related to drug and alcohol in this country. We have only one Territorial Treatment Centre for adults who are looking for help with recovery from alcohol and drug addictions. That is the Nats'ejee K'eh Treatment Centre on the Hay River Reserve. The centre is operated under a third-party contract with the Deh Cho Health and Social Services Authority. Recently we were saddened to hear that the clients attending Nats'ejee K'eh had to be transferred to a treatment centre in northern Alberta. All 22 workers at the centre were locked out by their employer.

The workers at Nats'ejee K'eh Treatment Centre are northerners, many of them indigenous aboriginal northerners. The treatment at the centre incorporates cultural and traditional values and has been operating for 13 years. The workers have been without a contract for the past three and half years. The conditions of their employment follow a previous contract. However, when negotiation or ratification of a new contract or any question of clarification of existing terms are questioned the employer uses the opportunity to, in essence, threaten the continuation of the benefits that they now have.

Without a contract in place for the past three and a half years there have been no pay increases. When inflation is factored in, we all know that the effect of this is a decrease in pay. The credentials of many of the workers are directly comparable to employees in the public service. The comparison of the wages clearly indicates that the workers at Nats'ejee K'eh are not at wage parity with their counterparts in the public service.

Quite apart from economic issues, though, Mr. Speaker, is the fact that this is an institution funded through a GNWT contract. It is a very necessary and needed service for northerners. The alternative for treatment is to ship our residents to placements in Alberta and pay even more for the services. We have long discussed the desire for the Members of this House to be repatriating northerners who now have to seek specialized treatment in the South and I could go on at length about the benefits of providing this treatment in the North. We talk about building capacity for northerners to deal with northern issues and challenges, yet we have a group of 22 workers, a unique and necessary service with a proven track record for helping those most in need, and as a government we lack the power or the will to deal with a labour issue which would see our workers locked out and our northern clients shipped to Alberta.

Of course I am not privy to all the details of what has taken place to date and I don't hold myself up as an expert in labour relations, however, Mr. Speaker, I do know that there is an obligation on the part of the employer to act in good faith. I know that workers deserve a collective agreement that is current, fair and equitable.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.