Thank you, Premier Roland. As there are no further comments is committee agreed that we proceed with detail? Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I just want to get the Minister’s comments on recruitment strategy and what are they looking at in this coming year. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. I believe we can actually deal with that particular question when we get to active position summary. Keep it specific to the detail of the main estimates. Rather than going to the Premier, I’ll save that opportunity for you later. We’ll go to the detail. Is committee agreed that we go to detail?

We’re on section four of Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations, page 4-7. We’ll defer until we have gone through the activity summary pages. The first one to consider is page 4-8. It’s an information item, infrastructure investment summary.

We’re on page 4-9. Information item, active position summaries. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you very much. I’d like to talk about aboriginal recruitment there, Mr. Chair.

---Laughter

One of my colleagues, too, was typically asking about the break-out numbers in terms of all our full-time staff in terms of P1, P2, P3. If I can ask those allocations, as well as by management positions. I know that initial numbers are low in terms of P1 and the Minister did talk about it in his opening remarks. I’m very curious about their recruitment strategy, whether it be internal or external, of how they plan to manage this in the upcoming year. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Premier Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I apologize for not responding to that one piece the Member mentioned earlier. As I highlighted in my opening comments, the recruitment of aboriginal peoples has been a challenge within the department. That’s why we’ve undertaken this one step of training in-house, especially with the negotiator positions and, in fact, moved one up to a chief negotiator. We’ve had some success, as well, on the education leave piece where we’ve had a number of our aboriginal staff go for further education. When that happens,

that opens more doors. In fact, we’ve had two of those staff on, one with the federal government, higher responsibilities and one within our government, another taking on higher responsibilities. We’ve had success but so much success they’ve moved on to other places within governments.

The package we will be working with on two corporate human resources is on the succession planning and further training of aboriginal employees under affirmative action. We’ve tried to do what we can internally through that training package and we will continue to look at more flexibility. That is, for example, the level of entry when it comes into some of these positions are fairly high. A negotiator position is an example where we’ve done the one-year training module with those interested. We have had good success in that area and we’re looking to continue on that path. Thank you.

Are there other strategies that they’re looking at besides the existing model he’s talking about? For those that did get trained and had other opportunity to move on, I commend them as well, but I don’t think the ministry should be discouraged by it. I think they should continue along those lines. I’m just curious about any other strategies that they may have.

Mr. Chairman, we’re working with the Department of Human Resources; they’re the lead on that file. Once we come up with a comprehensive approach, then we’ll be able to plug into that and use that as a tool specifically for our department. That work is ongoing and we will be working with the Department of Human Resources in coming up with the implementation once the structure has been agreed to. Thank you.

Thank you, Premier Roland. Next on my list, Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. In the active positions side, just a comment. I think that the system that they are using to run people through the system and through a training program is a very good system. I think that this government had some major successes with this program in the ‘70s and ‘80s. Then basically the In-Service Training Program was discontinued back then. I think that this idea of bringing trainees in to train them and even if they do end up outside the GNWT unfortunately...If they do end up in the GNWT somewhere else in higher positions, I view it as a positive thing. Just a comment from me in this area. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. As there is no question, I’ll go to the next person on my list. Mr. Menicoche.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to follow up on the Minister’s comment with regard to working with HR and with further strategy. Is he aware of...Has he been utilizing the Public Service Career Training Program that’s within HR? If he has...Well, maybe I’ll just ask that question there, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Premier Roland.

Mr. Chairman, that program that was in place some time ago is no longer fully in effect and that’s why we’re coming up with a Corporate Human Resource Strategy. Hence, in our way of trying to move people from within, we have come up with this training module and process and looking to continue to use that while the Department of Human Resources comes up with an overall strategy. We don’t want to get into overall government departments running off and doing their own piece and confusing what actually happens, but in the meantime this process is working and we will continue to work with that. Hopefully, we can even have it incorporated government-wide, if that initiative is agreed to. Thank you.

I just wanted to comment, and Mr. Beaulieu mentioned it as well, but it’s something that indeed occurred in the past or were some best practices involved in there. I would urge the ministry to work with HR, look at what they were and see if we could translate those same successes into a new type of program that will benefit not only your ministry but the other departments that we have in our government. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. More of a comment. Comments on page 4-9? Questions? Page 4-9, information item, active position summary.

Moving along to page 4-11, activity summary, corporate management, operations expenditure. Mr. Bromley.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure commented to the government that they recommended that where the department’s mandate is related to supporting the collective ability of the NWT to create political stability and certainty, a balance of encouraging investments, economic development and environmental sustainability is both sought and expressed in departmental documents. What’s new in those three items, investments, economic development and environmental sustainability, is, of

course, the environmental sustainability clause. The department agreed that ensuring environmental sustainability should be included in the negotiating mandates and the department will incorporate an environmental sustainability aspect into the comprehensive mandate review project.

I’m wondering where this is brought in, if it’s under corporate management, if this comprehensive mandate review project is bringing this in as the department indicated, and what the cost of that project is and is it represented here in one of these line items. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bromley. Premier Roland.