Mr. Speaker, there is an unspoken culture embedded within human resources in our government. It can be hard to see and identify if you're not looking in the right places. There seems to be a punitive side of human resources, because when employees try standing up for themselves by speaking out about issues they see or by appealing a job hire by the Government of the Northwest Territories, they get branded and blacklisted. Outspoken people become undervalued, discarded, and frowned upon by hiring personnel and, therefore, shut out from the system itself. It's like an unbreakable cycle or a feedback loop that never ends.

In addition, Mr. Speaker, I believe there is also a lack of interpersonal connection and human compassion that applicants receive from hiring personnel. It's almost like some staff enjoy saying "no" to applicants who aren't chosen for a job. Staff needs to know their hiring decisions impact people's lives, and it usually isn't for the better.

Lastly, there's also an overrepresentation of non-Indigenous people within most senior management positions in the Government of the Northwest Territories. Together, these facts all amount to numerous systemic barriers faced by both applicants and existing public workers alike. I will have questions for the Minister of Finance later today. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.