The president of the Nunavut Employees Union is criticizing the Government of Nunavut for releasing its 2022-23 Public Service Annual Report just recently.

鈥淚 just feel like it's two years too late. We're not surprised, but again, we're disappointed that the Government of Nunavut is presenting reports on public service data from 2022 to 2023 in 2025. I think that's ridiculous, and it speaks volumes to what's going on at the GN right now, and how they actually care about workers,鈥� Jason Rochon said. 

Rochon said there are numerous issues affecting workers that require action so workers feel safe and secure in their positions.

While he said recruitment and retention is an issue for the government, he feels that nothing is being done to address the issue.

鈥淪o it speaks to the dysfunction in public service workplaces here, including on reporting key information and metrics about Nunavut鈥檚 workforce,鈥� he said. 

Another issue Rochon highlighted was the fact that while 50 complaints of workplace harassment were received in 2022-23, only six met the government鈥檚 definition of harassment and were subsequently addressed. 

鈥淲e know that workers in the territories, recently, in the last six months, some of the cases, word for word, is managers are bringing people into their office, and they're saying things like, 鈥業f you don't do what I tell you to do, I'm calling the RCMP on you.鈥� So we're getting threats like that,鈥� he said.

鈥淚 just think the rhetoric that we're hearing, and the fact that we hear statements and we see people going on social media, then these organizations and employers say, 鈥榃ell, it's just an HR issue.鈥� 

鈥淪ystemic racism is not an HR issue. Coming out with a report in 2025 from two or three years ago is not OK,鈥� he said.

Rochon also called the number of casual workers being used and the extensions given to casual work 鈥渁bsolutely ridiculous.鈥�

鈥淭here's almost 700 casual assignments filled by Nunavut Inuit, roughly that鈥檚 12.6 per cent of the total 5,557 positions with the GN. There's no need for that. 
鈥淲hy is a beneficiary or any worker in the territory casual after eight years? We have a housing shortage. How many people or young families are going to go out and get a mortgage when they're in a precarious work situation because the government's doing nothing? 

鈥淭his is concerning for us because it means workers are not feeling supported or valued in the workplace and that their challenges and significant enough for them to choose to go work elsewhere over the GN, despite the compensation and benefits.

鈥淚 encourage all MLAs to continue to ask questions because Nunavut deserves answers. Nunavummiut deserve the very best, and we definitely deserve to have our questions answered when they're being asked. 

鈥淲e have to hold the government accountable because nobody else is and they're not holding themselves accountable.鈥�

While no one was made available for an interview, a written statement from the Department of Human Resources indicated that 鈥渢he Public Service Annual Report for 2023-24 is scheduled to be tabled during the Spring 2025 legislative sitting, after which it will be made available on our website. The Department of Human Resources is currently working towards being up to date on its public service annual reporting.

鈥淭he most recent Public Service Annual Report is for the 2022-23 fiscal year and does not contain information that accurately reflects the current capacity of the public service. The 2023-24 and 2024-25 reports will be available by the end of this calendar year.
 
鈥淩egarding harassment complaints, the report from 2022-23 indicates that out of 50 complaints received, only six met the definition of harassment. In response, the process of managing complaints was revised in 2024 to introduce informal conflict resolution before escalating complaints to a formal investigation.
 
鈥淭he use of a casual workforce in 2022-23 reflects hiring during the pandemic, which led to increased casual rates to ensure Nunavummiut's essential needs are met. While casual employment is not ideal, currently over 90 per cent of our casual employees have been with the Government of Nunavut for less than two years. These casual appointments provide individuals with skill development and training opportunities that allow them to qualify for the position.鈥�