Caroline Wawzonek

I certainly share the view that making sure that all staff at Corrections facilities across the Northwest Territories are safe is critical. I certainly am aware of the need to do that and aware of the challenges of working in the Corrections environment. I have seen and am aware from just my involvement in the correctional area that this is something that we need to be constantly vigilant about. Leaving aside this specific incident and the specific individuals involved, when I assumed this role, it was something that I was alive to and did, indeed, take action to establish the inter...

There are certain forms of escort within the facility that require two guards to be conducting an escort, and the staff at the correctional facility are aware of that. That policy has been the subject of review, and that has been the subject of review by the staff and by the supervisors at the facility. I am confident, going forward, that they have looked at that, that they have looked at that policy specifically, and that the things that we've done since then, including training in January, including the inter-departmental working group to support the staff, and hopefully, also with the...

I am confident in the work that was done in response to this incident by our staff, by the Department of Justice staff. That said, that doesn't mean that we can't still, being a new government and looking more broadly at correctional services and more broadly at the work that is done by all corrections staff, always strive to do better. I can say that there is going to be a workplace assessment done about safety and corrections this spring, and that that is, in fact, going to be external to the Department of Justice.

I am happy to commit and confirm that we will reach out to our legal counterparts in the other jurisdictions. We will reach out to stakeholders such as airlines, such as computer service providers. As far as public engagement, I think I would be a little more hesitant there in that that can mean a lot of different things depending on the nature of the bill. This change would involve a change to regulations. This is not a change that requires a legislative change; it is the Daylight Savings Time Regulations, I think, I'm not sure if that's quite right, so it's a fairly narrow change that would...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm glad I'm still the Minister responsible for "Justice" and not taking on the mantle of "Time." Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to confirm that staff within the Department of Justice are actively involved with their counterparts. We are keeping tabs of what's happening. We're aware of the progress that seems to be taking place in a lot of other jurisdictions, moving away from time changing. I'm not going to stand here today and say that we will take the lead, but I can say the department is right now quite active on this. If there's an opportunity to take the lead, then, we...

There was the workforce development framework released last year under the last Assembly that was the result in part of a jurisdictional scan, looking at best practices. That is still being worked into the process that we have currently. It is hoped that this will continue to evolve into a best practice of corporate-wide resources for all the territory and for all the different regions.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, succession planning is still a priority. Indeed, it is ever only more of a priority. There are quite a large number of GNWT employees who are going to be retiring over the next five to 10 years. In short, I am definitely in agreement, and I am pleased that the Member has raised this issue. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

While I have spoken here many times about the value that I place on partnerships with the federal government, I will also say very plainly that I do not think we always need to wait for others to do work that is relevant to our own residents. I can't give a defined date, but I am happy to also point out, as I had missed earlier, that the interdepartmental working group that I have mentioned has actually commissioned research through the Aurora Research Institute about best practices to address domestic violence and intimate partner violence here in the Northwest Territories. What I would like...

I don't disagree that this is an issue of great importance, and I, of course, want to ensure that all of the employees of the GNWT are treated not only fairly, but in the best possible way. I am simply not going to make a commitment about a bargaining mandate. I am not going to make a commitment on the floor, other than to say, as I have before, that I do make a commitment to improving and continuing the relationship that we have with our unions. It's an important and critical relationship and, if this is an issue that comes up in the course of those conversations, I would look forward to...

I wouldn't want the Minister of Justice to get angry with me if I'm now interpreting the collective agreement. That was not my intention, but certainly, simply to just point out again that more than three days of leave with pay will be approved by the employer, and that approval cannot be unreasonably denied. If it's a simple reminder of what the collective agreement says, and if that's not being applied, firstly, I would ask Members to bring that to my attention if it's not being applied, and there is no harm in reminding our own staff and our own supervisors what is in the agreement, so I am...