Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Your Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to provide its report on Indigenous Representation in the Northwest Territories Public Service and commends it to the House.
INTRODUCTION
The Standing Committee on Government Operations reviewed Indigenous representation in the Northwest Territories public service. Currently, Indigenous employees make up approximately thirty percent of the Government of the Northwest Territories public service while, at the same time, half of the NWT's population is Indigenous.
Finding ways to increase Indigenous representation in the GNWT public service is a priority the committee chose to work on during the 19th Assembly. The committee aimed to identify the systemic barriers to increasing Indigenous representation in the public service and review GNWT human resource practices and policies.
Committee's review began in 2020 but was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In June 2021, committee visited Inuvik; other planned community visits had to be put on hold. During 2022, committee held a virtual public hearing in Yellowknife and visited the communities of Thebacha-Fort Smith, Zhahti Kue-Fort Providence, Behchoko, K'atlodeeche-Hay River, and the K'atlodeeche First Nation. A plan to visit to Deline had to be cancelled and a virtual meeting was held instead.
Committee heard about a deep and longstanding disappointment with the GNWT as an employer and a viewpoint that the system is intended to keep Indigenous people out of the public service, evidencing a broken trust in the GNWT. Yet, many also expressed a "now or never" hope for change.
To be clear, Members intend to improve the Affirmative Action Policy.
Committee asks that the government take a candid look at the recommendations presented here, recognize the reconciliatory intent, and implement the recommendations in relevant policies, including the Indigenous Recruitment and Retention Framework and new initiatives such as the proposed Indigenous Employment Policy and Employment Equity Policy.
Proportions and numbers characterizing Indigenous employment in the GNWT are presented in Appendix 1: Indigenous employment statistics in the NWT public sector. A list of public meetings is shown in Appendix 2. And six written submissions are attached in Appendix 3.
Committee members thank everyone who took the time to meet with committee, in person and virtually, and made the effort to provide us with their thoughts in writing. Committee expresses gratitude for the warm welcome Members and staff received on Indigenous lands and in communities.
COMMITTEE CONSIDERATIONS
The GNWT's Affirmative Action Policy, created in 1989, did not successfully increase Indigenous employment with the GNWT. The GNWT says on the public engagement site of the review of the Affirmative Action Policy:
"Despite being in force for over 30 years, it is unclear how much the policy has helped the Government of the Northwest Territories meet our objective of a competent public service that is representative of the population it serves."
The Affirmative Action Policy was a response to replace the Native Employment Policy of 1973. Following the division into Nunavut and the NWT, the GNWT reviewed human resource practices resulting in a centralized human resources division in 2005 while continuing to follow the 1989 Affirmative Action Policy.
The Affirmative Action Policy creates four designated groups:
- Indigenous Aboriginal Persons;
- Indigenous Non-Aboriginal Persons;
- Resident Disabled Persons; and,
- Resident Women.
Staffing priorities are granted according to the designated groups.
The use of the terms "Indigenous" and "Aboriginal" is confusing, and everyone appears to agree that clarity in the language is direly needed. Committee heard that most government employees do not know how to implement this policy uniformly to ensure accountability across government.
The Affirmative Action Policy indicates it "shall conform to the equality rights provisions of the Canadian Human Rights Act and Section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms." The designated group for Priority 2 has been challenged in the past.
The GNWT will need to work to and ensure the Affirmative Action Policy and all related frameworks and guidelines will be reviewed and linked to the GNWT's effort to comply with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The review of the policy needs to align with other Cabinet policies, as suggested in recommendation 4 of the Special Committee on Reconciliation and Indigenous Affairs Report.
The Affirmative Action Policy is a key mechanism to achieve reconciliation. It is about the livelihood and putting bread on the table. The current practice appears to many as conflicting. We put everyone to school and present it as a path to success, yet once it is about employment, the parameters change, and most are being turned down. It is difficult to comprehend and explain.
The GNWT's policy direction for Indigenous recruitment comes from the Indigenous Recruitment and Retention Framework and the to-do list from the Indigenous Recruitment and Retention Action Plan. Each GNWT department created a distinct "Indigenous Employment Plan," basically mirroring the GNWT's general plan with targets and actions tailored to each department.
Overall, the GNWT grew by 124 new employees in 2021-2022; three are Priority 1. The Indigenous share of GNWT employees reached an all-time low of 28.8 percent in 2021. Indigenous representation also declined in 15 communities. This information is from the GNWT 2021-2022 Public Service Annual Report, summarized in Appendix 1.
Witnesses explained they feel let down by the Union of Northern Workers and that more work to support Indigenous employees is needed. In particular, the union needs more Indigenous service officers and an improved and revamped grievance process to support Indigenous employees better. Committee agrees that the Union of Northern Workers can do more to help increase Indigenous representation in the public service. Committee wants the GNWT to improve the way competitions are held, decentralize operations, create a fair and transparent appeal process, implement mechanisms to hold hiring managers accountable, set hiring targets, and be cautious of potential problems with limiting the definition of Indigenous.
I will now pass the reading on to the deputy chair, the Member for Thebacha. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.