Delivered October 3, 2017

Mr. Speaker, since 2013, September 30^th has been marked as Orange Shirt Day, a day for all Canadians to remember the survivors of the residential school system.

Organizers chose an orange shirt as the symbol for that day based on a story told by Phyllis Jack Webstat, a survivor of the St. Joseph Mission Residential School in Williams Lake, BC. In her story, Ms. Webstat tells of having the shiny, new orange shirt her grandmother had given to her being taken away on her first day at residential school.

Delivered on March 10, 2017

Mr. Speaker, the decisions we make here in the Legislative Assembly, have real impacts on the people of the Northwest Territories. Make no mistake about it; they are watching us to find out what our plans are and how they will be affected. That puts a big responsibility on us to make sure what we say here is accurate and does not cause any public fear or misconceptions about the government’s plans.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to announce that the Government of the Northwest Territories has, for the third time, been selected as one of Canada’s Top Employers of Young People.

YELLOWKNIFE (November 18, 2016) – Starting in mid-November, the Government of the Northwest Territories will make salary ranges for all public servant positions publicly available.

In its mandate, the GNWT committed to proactively improving openness and transparency. While information about employee salary ranges has always been available to the public through job descriptions, making this information available in a single, centralized source on the Department of Human Resources website will make it more accessible for NWT residents.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to update the Members of this Assembly on the status of the NWT Public Service.

The Department of Human Resources reports on the public service using various mechanisms, including the 20/20 Strategic Plan Results Reports, the Employee Engagement and Satisfaction Survey Results, and the Public Service Annual Report, to name a few.

Mr. Speaker, the GNWT has made a commitment in its Mandate to continue to implement the Regional Recruitment Program to assist with increasing regional employment opportunities by linking residents with on-the-job training.  In 2014, the GNWT introduced the Regional Recruitment Program to help increase regional recruitment and retention by providing a link between vacant regional positions and Northern residents seeking employment.

YELLOWKNIFE (September 30, 2016) – The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) and Northwest Territories Teachers’ Association are pleased to announce that they have ratified a new collective agreement.

The focus of both parties during negotiations was to provide NWT students and educators with the best possible learning and working conditions.

YELLOWKNIFE (June 28, 2016) – The NWT Teachers’ Association and the Government of the Northwest Territories have reached a tentative agreement.  Both parties are pleased with the progress made in negotiations and are recommending ratification of the agreement to their principals. 

Details of the tentative agreement will not be publicly released until the ratification process is completed.

For further information, please contact:

Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories is a diverse workplace, with employees working in many different locations and in a variety of capacities.  Regardless of the kind of work they do, all employees have a fundamental right to be healthy and safe in the workplace. Ensuring we have a strong, safe and healthy workforce allows the GNWT to deliver key services and programs to residents of the NWT. 

YELLOWKNIFE (June 15, 2016) – The annual Premier’s Awards were held in the Great Hall of the Legislative Assembly this morning as a part of the GNWT’s week-long celebration of National Public Service Week.

The Premier’s Award for Excellence recognizes the outstanding achievement of individual GNWT employees or teams of GNWT employees who continue to strive for excellence, best practice management and improvements in the workplace.