Bob Bromley

I hope that will be part of the discussion, because I think there are still a lot of opportunities to be mined there. Finally, I guess, will the Minister commit to following, as a review process, the model that was used in the review of the Income Support Program, which was a highly successful public consultation process?

There are a few others that I’ve heard of, but one I’m very interested in is the universal coverage and stepping away from that towards the income testing. A lot of my constituents have brought that up with me. Canadians in general want health care, they’re willing to pay for it, and our tax system is already addressing availability to pay, which is not addressed with the income testing approach. So will universal coverage and moving away from income testing be up for part of the discussion in this public review?

My question is for the Minister of Human Resources, following up on my Member’s statement today. As I mentioned, I’ve become affected by the disillusionment and disappointment shown by a lot of our young people — our summer employees, our casual employees, our new employees — and they’re lamenting the waste that they see.

I know the Minister made a statement the other day that they’re embarking on a comprehensive human resource strategic plan, which I’m very happy to hear. How is the department going to ensure that all employees have input, specifically these new and potentially long term...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I would like to address the conditions and opportunities this government needs to consider to become, once again, an employer of choice.

The job market in Canada is changing rapidly. This government needs to make some progressive changes if it intends to remain competitive in attracting and retaining well educated and motivated individuals. Over the next ten years a large percentage of Canada’s workforce is going into retirement, and this is driving up wages for educated and skilled entry level employees. We cannot simply rely on higher wages to attract employees...

Thank you for those comments from the Premier. I know that our public is acutely aware of this issue and also acutely concerned.

We apparently purchased fuel near the peak of the cost — the bump we went through — to resupply our communities. There’s a potential for some serious downturns in our industries. Will this government be preparing a thorough update and response to this, at least for discussion in the business plans or certainly at our next session?

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. It’s on the condition of our economy and what the potential for problems might be in the Northwest Territories.

I know the Premier did not attend the national round table of Premiers and leaders, but it’s recently been announced that the Yukon is taking action to at least monitor the situation. They are developing a round table themselves, for that jurisdiction, to give them an early alert and try and come up with some solutions. What is this government doing to monitor this situation and come up with a plan before it’s too late?

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate those comments by the Minister. A lot of the issues raised are government-wide issues, and I am hoping that this department and all departments will act to ensure that many of these things are addressed. They are brought up in real terms by our employees and our potential long term employees. I think it is well recognized by the Minister and others that we are not the employer of choice right now. We’d like to regain that status and both attract and retain employees.

So once again I would ask the Minister: is he willing to commit to working with the other departments...

Thank you for those comments. I am surprised that the Minister is surprised, if he indeed does have access to those exit interviews. I want to be clear that the students and young people and new employees that I talked to are clear in that they’re very happy to have had the opportunity for employment. It is just the disappointment in the workplace — the missing teamwork and so on that I have mentioned.

One of the big ones is the incredible amount of wastage. I mention that again. The ENR, for example, apparently is the only department that has mandatory double-sided photocopying and so on. What...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. In the area of wastage of resources, these people suggest we encourage carpooling within divisions, creating a GNWT blog where employees can make suggestions for savings, and assigning a roving resource monitor for ensuring efficiency. This assignment could rotate among staff so that everyone is involved. Many employees who have suggestions for improvement in their department do not speak out for fear of retribution. We need to give these people a vessel through which they can anonymously express their concerns.

In summary, Mr. Speaker, our...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate those comments from the Minister. This, again, is a very serious issue.

I’d just like to note that the Yukon will be holding round table meetings with various associations, such as the Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Yukon Communities and so on, so it’s not just an internal process. Will the Premier commit to including a public process where our residents can participate in a response to this situation as required?