Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Beaulieu.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to follow up on the question by my colleague Mr.

Ramsay from the Affirmative Action Policy

pertaining to aboriginal employees. Would the Minister agree to evaluate all aboriginal employees in the plan to move more aboriginal employees into management?

Thank you, Mr.

Beaulieu. The

honourable Minister responsible for Human Resources, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I understand the question, it is: would we undertake to evaluate all aboriginal people that are working for the government with a view to promoting them to senior management? I think we do that on an annual basis.

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. The time for question period has expired. However, I will allow the Member a supplementary question.

Can the Minister have each of the departments, since they’re responsible for human resource hiring, complete a career plan for all its aboriginal employees?

In the performance evaluation process we do exactly that with every employee of the Government of the Northwest Territories. We encourage management to do annual performance appraisals with their employees.

I’d like to ask if for a promotion into management they would look at the set of qualifications to ensure that jobs that can be done

by aboriginal employees are given to aboriginal employees.

The Government of the Northwest Territories operates under the merit principle. With the Affirmative Action Policy an aboriginal employee who applies for a job or for a senior management job or a middle management job, if they meet the qualifications and if there is only one aboriginal applicant, would have the highest priority. They would be interviewed first, and if they met the minimum qualifications or requirements of the job, they would receive the job. I guess the other process that could be followed would be a direct employment process. Generally, in all cases the first priority is given to aboriginal people.

Thank you, Mr.

McLeod. Final

supplementary, Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the department or the Minister ensure that the department puts a priority on increasing aboriginal employees in management and keep it on the agenda and report the results back to the House within a period of time, maybe at the next sitting or the time after that?

I would be pleased to commit to that, but I think it’s important to realize that without additional tools to work with to try to address this problem, even if I put in one year or two years, I would come back in that period with the same results. I guess what I’m saying is that I need additional tools to be able to work with. In the past, movement toward an employment equity process was put forward. Certainly, I would like to try that approach once again. I committed to looking at the Public Service Career Training Program that was in place ten years ago or so. I think I would need additional tools in order to improve on the numbers.

Thank you, Mr.

McLeod. Item 8,

written questions. The Member for Yellowknife Centre, Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have a written question for the Minister of Human Resources. The question is as follows.

1) Can the Minister provide the details of how the

Affirmative Action Policy is applied to the hiring of summer students?

2) On what date was each summer student hired

for the 2008 summer season?

3) For each student hired, how many are

returning summer students, and how many times have the returning students previously been hired as summer students?

4) How many students will be going to post-

secondary institutes for the first time this fall?

5) And finally, how many summer students are

finished post-secondary schooling and will not be returning in the fall?

Thank you, Mr.

Hawkins. The

honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr.

Speaker. My

questions are for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment:

1) What is the number of employers across the

NWT accessing money from the Wage Subsidy Program?

2) What is the number and location of

apprentices?

3) What is the amount of money accessed

through the Wage Subsidy Program?

Item 9, returns to written questions. Item 10, replies to opening address. Item 11, petitions. Item 12, reports of standing and special committees. Item 13, reports of committees on the review of bills. Item 14, tabling of documents. The honourable Minister responsible for Industry, Tourism and Investment, Mr. Bob McLeod.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document entitled Agriculture Products Marketing Council 2007–2008 Annual Report.

Document 60-16(2), Agriculture Products

Marketing Council 2007–2008 Annual Report, tabled.

Item 15, notices of motion. Item 16, notices of motion for first reading of bills. Item 17, motions. Item 18, first reading of bills. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, that Bill 11, An Act to Amend the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act, be read for the first time.

Bill 11 has had first reading.

Motion carried; Bill 11, An Act to Amend the

Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act, read a first time.

Item 19, second reading of bills. Item 20, consideration in Committee of the Whole of bills and other matters: Bill 8, Committee Reports, Tabled Document 37-16(2), Committee Report 6-16(2), Committee Report 7-16(2) with Mr. Krutko in the chair.

By the authority given me as Speaker by Motion 10-16(2), I hereby authorize the House to sit beyond the daily hour of adjournment to consider business before the House.

I call the Committee of the Whole to order. We have several items to deal with as the Committee of the Whole: Bill 8, Committee Report 2-16(2), Committee Report 3-16(2), Committee Report 4-16(2), Committee Report 5-16(2), Committee Report 6-16(2), Committee Report 7-16(2), Tabled Document 37-16(2). Mrs. Groenewegen, what is the wish of the committee?

Mr. Chairman, the wish of the committee today is to proceed with the consideration of the Main Estimates for the Department of Education, Culture and Employment and, pending the conclusion of that department, move on to Industry, Tourism and Investment. Thank you.