This is page numbers 1011 - 1034 of the Hansard for the 19th Assembly, 2nd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was indigenous.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Mahsi Member for Nunakput. Honourable Premier.

Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My understanding is that ENR will be looking at the monies that they give for the harvesting program, the harvesting assistance program, to see what they can do to support it, but there is also other funding that has come in. Indigenous governments were given money through the federal government for COVID-19. Health and Social Services gave money for the At Home on the Land initiative to Indigenous governments. There may be some flexibility within other programs, as well, so there are various streams of monies that are coming for the Indigenous governments. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

I am really happy to hear that. I need to know. It was all front-end loaded in regard to when this happened and everybody, and the money was flowing in regard to the communities and for the Inuvialuit, the Gwich'in. Everybody got their funds to go and get out on the land, but now I guess we are mid-COVID-19. Is there any more funding that is going to be announced to our local communities or to our local hunters and trappers and harvesters?

Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

As spoken, we are in the process, ENR is in the process, of reviewing the harvester assistance program to see how we can make that more flexible, but the key thing is that the Indigenous governments did receive federal money. I do not know, Mr. Speaker, how much that was, respectfully. It was given directly to the Indigenous governments. However, my understanding from the department is that the federal government is looking at perhaps supporting more money to the Indigenous governments for COVID-19.

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

I think they ran out of money. Even a modest bump in funding, Mr. Speaker, would help our community and the lowest income people who need to get out on the land. The GNWT has done an analysis to determine how much funding would be needed to assist residents to comply with public health orders to getting them back out on the land and supporting them.

Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Absolutely, any Indigenous governments that need help in any areas, if it's within our powers as the Government of the Northwest Territories, then definitely we would be willing to sit down with them to help them to fill out applications, to understand the processes, to find out where resources are. Call and we will answer.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Honourable Premier. Oral questions. Member for Nunakput.

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

I have your cellphone number.

---Laughter

Jackie Jacobson

Jackie Jacobson Nunakput

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just am really thankful for that, the Premier committing to help and assist and making sure that the Cabinet and herself commit to getting additional funding that might be available for this coming summer as soon as possible because we are still in the midst of COVID-19. We are still in a pandemic. People are still really scared in regard to COVID-19, and just making sure that they are taken care of. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you. That is more of a comment. Would you like to respond, Honourable Premier?

Question 283-19(2): Emerging Wisely on the Land
Oral Questions

June 3rd, 2020

Page 1017

Caroline Cochrane

Caroline Cochrane Range Lake

Absolutely. Like I said, our job, especially with Indigenous affairs, is to help the Indigenous governments. However, I do need to clarify that the Indigenous governments, and I am respectful of them, have asked me to not interfere with their federal funding, that they wanted it directly. I have advocated and lobbied the federal government that that money should go directly to the Indigenous governments, so it's a fine line. I am careful of how I lobby. I will lobby for additional money, but I will not ask where, how much, or to whom because I think we are crossing a line at that point. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Honourable Premier. Oral questions. Member for Thebacha.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we enter phase 2 of Emerging Wisely, I would like to know if the Minister has plans to end the hiring freeze and hire more summer students this year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Thebacha. Minister of Human Resources.

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It's not so much that there was a hiring freeze, but the program that is administered by the Department of Finance certainly did put a hold on new offers to students. Any offers that were in place, those ones have been honoured, and those students have been employed. The reality was, Mr. Speaker, that bringing on several hundred potentially new employees at a time when our own employees are struggling to adapt to the current conditions and now are having to be asked to find a way to slowly return back to their workplaces, this is not a time to be bringing on a large group of new students. It's not only about supporting them financially. We want to ensure that, when they are coming to work as summer students and interns for the GNWT, they are getting a meaningful and positive experience. Right now, Mr. Speaker, the priority has to be on ensuring the safety and well-being of all of our own staff, ensuring the safety and well-being of the people who we serve, and it's not a time, unfortunately, when we can bring on a large number of students.

That said, if there are departments, boards, and agencies who have the capacity to hire a student and want to hire a student, they can come to the Department of Finance and indicate that. There's not a set freeze, per se. If there is a match that can be made, then the student can still be hired. It's just that, at this point, as far as a formal program, this isn't the time. There is also the casual pool and, to the extent that students want to apply to the casual pool, there certainly are positions available, frankly, as a result of COVID, that can be filled from that pool. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Would the Minister commit to prioritize the hiring of summer students wherever possible across the Government of the Northwest Territories?

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

I know it's not popular, but I can't make that commitment right now. I can't make the commitment to hire students specifically. What I can say is that, again, there is the casual pool that I would certainly encourage the students to apply to. There are positions that need to get filled. There are tasks that need to get done, in large part arising from the needs of our COVID-19 response. While that's not exclusive to students, those positions are there, and we would certainly want the students to put their names into that casual pool, if available. At that point, the hiring process undergoes the usual processes that it does within Human Resources.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

I think a positive message is important to the students of the Northwest Territories. What message does the Department of Human Resources have for the territory's students who have missed out on potential job opportunities by the Government of the Northwest Territories this year?

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

I share the view that there should be a positive message in all of this. COVID-19 has been a very unique and unprecedented challenge. At the risk of saying what is being said department after department about the nature of this being unprecedented, for the students who aren't going to be getting the positions that they wanted or hoped for, again, if they are able to get a position through the casual pool, they will undoubtedly get an experience unlike anything they were otherwise going to get prior to the pandemic. If they don't get hired, again, we do have a number of strong programs in place to hire students when they do return to the Northwest Territories after their schooling.

The federal government does have a program in place right now to encourage students to go out and, firstly, to have private hiring with companies, but also to go out and do work and public work and volunteer-type services. I would encourage students to go and look into that. The last option, again, as someone in human resources, is go out and build your resume in a way that maybe doesn't involve a formal employer. There are a lot of people out there who need help right now, and I know that's not the kind of funding that students want to get, but it's just not the right time for the Human Resources to be rolling out those programs. However, we are still going to be here looking for students to come back to the North as this pandemic passes us by.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Thebacha.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Mr. Speaker, as our government prepares for the second wave of COVID-19 and for future pandemics, will the Department of Human Resources commit to making a contingency plan for the future that is more mindful of summer student employment? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Caroline Wawzonek

Caroline Wawzonek Yellowknife South

I can certainly say that the Department of Human Resources will be looking at all of the programs that rolled out, looking at the way in which we supported our employees and looking at the returning to work plans that we have. Frankly, it's beyond simply looking at students, but looking at the way in which Human Resources was responding to the pandemic. We will undertake that project in order to be even better prepared for whatever emergencies we may face going forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I've got questions for the Minister of ITI. Can the Minister tell me: what is the departmental budget for assisting artisans working from home, more specifically those who create artwork and traditional crafts? Also, is there an equity requirement to access grants, and is there a requirement to have a business licence? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.