Some First Nations leaders expressed disappointment because they may not get to witness historic legislation potentially pass in the Yukon Legislative Assembly since the Yukon Party’s vote against allowing the proposed health authority act to go to third reading on April 25.
Stephen Mills, co-chair of the health transformation advisory committee, told reporters in the lobby of the legislature that afternoon that some people who wanted to observe the likely passing of the bill would be out of the territory during the final week of the spring sitting. That’s the last chance for the proposition to go ahead before the fall.
“What this was about was all of us allowing First Nations and all of us a chance to see this momentous occasion, and it’s kind of emotional,” he said.
His voice shook. Mills said he reached out to Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon to tell him that “we were the ones that asked that this get brought today because we have other meetings that we cannot be here.”
“I was there when the Yukon land claim legislation was passed in Parliament in the early ’90s. I was there as a negotiator when the YESAA legislation was passed in Parliament. This was my chance to be here on one of the most important pieces of legislation for all Yukoners, to improve health outcomes (and) to decrease the amount of deaths that our First Nation people and other Yukoners are having when they fall because of some of the silos in the system,” Mills said.
“The Yukon Party chose to play politics, and that is unfortunate. I think we have their support for this bill.”
After passing the first and second readings earlier this spring, and after debate over the bill and amendments in committee of the whole, Bill 38 was reprinted and subsequently tabled in the legislature by the health minister on April 25.
Typically, bills must sit on the order paper for a day prior to being brought forward for third reading.
But MLAs can break the rules if all members of the legislative assembly agree.
Health and Social Services Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee had requested unanimous consent to skip the one-day waiting period.
That would’ve allowed the bill to move directly to third reading on April 25.
The Yukon Party didn’t vote in favour. Thus, unanimous consent wasn’t granted, and the bill will have to wait until at least the next sitting day.
If passed and implemented, the health authority will oversee Yukon hospitals and deliver health and social services across the territory.
READ MORE: Proposed legislation lays path for new Yukon health authority
Dixon said his party informed the governing Yukon Liberal Party on the morning of April 25 that they would not be granting unanimous consent because they wanted to follow normal procedure.
“We’ll make our views on the bill known when it is called for third reading,” he said.
“But we have concerns with the bill. We have expressed those over the course of the debate.”
Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation Chief Pauline Frost is chair of the chiefs committee on health and a former Liberal health minister.
She told reporters that she’s “disappointed.”
“The intention was to try to get some consensus moving this forward, because it’s so valuable, it’s so valuable to Yukoners, and the fact that we are trying to conform something that has not been working for decades for Yukoners, and in particular, Yukon First Nations,” she said.
“Do we cancel the meeting with the prime minister and all of the cabinet ministers in Ottawa so that we can stay here and support this legislation? The intention was to do that today. So, it’s disappointing in that regard.”
Both opposition parties were provided digital and hard copies of the reprinted bill that morning, prior to the legislative session that afternoon.
The Yukon NDP leader said her party expressed its support for the bill at second reading.
READ MORE: Council of Yukon First Nations supports creation of health authority
On the floor of the legislature the day earlier, Health and Social Services Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding, or MOU, between the government and unions impacted by the possible shift to a health authority. McPhee said the deal was made minutes before the announcement.
“We have full confidence in the conversations and documents that have been provided back and forth yesterday, last night and today that Yukon workers, who are health-care professionals — the individuals who will at some future date become employees of a Yukon health authority, Shäw Kwä’ą, — are protected to the greatest possibility, and our commitments to have them be at the forefront of our work together is now in writing,” she said.
“I appreciate that the moving of the amendment to Bill 38 at section 74 did spur on a conversation. I am very pleased that we are here and that no amendment, in my view, as I said earlier, should be made to this section but that the opportunity for protections for Yukon workers, all of which we had previously made publicly in this legislature and in other places, are now committed in a way that satisfies the representatives of those employees, and we look forward to that process proceeding.”
A press release from the Yukon Party credits the Official Opposition for forcing the Yukon government to negotiate a deal with unions.
Meanwhile, the Yukon NDP gave itself credit for resolving a “major impasse” with unions.
“We told the Liberals they needed to work with affected unions to sign an MOU because the health authority act didn’t clearly spell out how workers’ pensions and benefits would be protected, or how to deal with other labour relations issues,” Yukon NDP Leader Kate White said in a press release.
A statement from Jordan Owens, the director of cabinet communications, indicates “the Canada Labour Code guarantees that successorship rights exist for all bargaining unit employees.”
“This federal legislation means that even without an MOU between the Yukon government and unions, employees currently represented by a union will continue to be represented — and will port their existing, negotiated collective agreements, along with their corresponding pension and comprehensive benefits packages — over to the new health authority,” Owens wrote.
“However, since signing an MOU with the Yukon government let the unions give MLA White permission to support the health authority act, we were more than happy to do so.”
The Yukon Federation of Labour said by press release that the MOU is between the Yukon government, the Yukon Hospital Corporation and the unions representing health-care workers, the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada.
“This was a unique situation,” Teresa Acheson, president of the Yukon Federation of Labour, said in the release.
“Without this MOU, we would have asked the legislature to support amendments to the legislation to ensure meaningful engagement with the unions and ensure protections for workers through the transition.”
The union’s release expresses appreciation to all three territorial parties with seats in the house, including the Yukon Party, for “initially proposing amendments to the act to ensure workers would be included and protected.”
“We are also extremely grateful and impressed with the determination and strength shown by Kate White and the NDP caucus to stand with workers and engage with union staff and representatives on determining the best course of action. Overall, we thank the Liberal party for recognizing that consultation with unions will be essential to a successful transition to a health authority in Yukon.”
In the house, White thanked the francophone community for expressing its concerns and working with the minister and her officials to ensure the Languages Act was properly reflected in this piece of legislation.
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Contact Dana Hatherly at dana.hatherly@yukon-news.com