►
Description
Legislative Assembly of Alberta
A
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B
So
we
will
now
note
for
the
record
the
following:
substitutions
MLA
Smith
for
MLA
Singh
and
a
few
housekeeping
items
to
dress
before
we
return
to
the
business
at
hand.
Please
note
that
the
microphones
are
operated
by
Hansard
staff
committee.
Proceedings
are
live
streamed
on
the
internet
and
broadcast
on
Alberta
assembly
TV.
The
audio
and
video
stream
and
transcripts
of
meetings
can
be
accessed
via
the
legislambly
website.
Those
participating
by
video
conference
are
encouraged
to
please
turn
on
your
camera.
B
While
speaking
and
mute
your
microphone
when
not
speaking,
members
participating
virtually
who
wish
to
be
placed
on
the
speakers
list
are
asked
to
email
or
send
a
message
to
the
committee
Clerk
and
members
in
the
room
are
asked
to
please
signal
to
the
chair.
Please
set
your
cell
phones
and
other
devices
to
silent
for
the
duration
of
this
meeting.
So
we'll
now
move
to
approval
of
the
agenda.
Are
there
any
changes
or
additions
to
the
agenda.
B
B
Seeing
none
of
that
motion
is
carried
now,
we'll
move
to
the
approval
of
the
minutes.
We
have
minutes
from
the
February
14th
meeting
of
the
committee.
Do
members
have
any
errors
or
omissions
to
note
looking
to
the
floor
and
online,
seeing
none
I'll
ask
that
someone
moved
at
the
minutes
of
the
February
14th
meeting
of
the
standing
Committee
on
Public
Accounts
be
approved
as
distributed
looking
to
the
room,
I
see
it
moved
by
member
pancholi.
Thank
you.
Is
there
any
discussion
on
this
motion.
B
Seeing
on
that
motion
is
carried
I'll
now
welcome
our
guests
from
jobs,
economy
and
Northern
development
who
are
here
to
address
the
labor
and
immigration
annual
report
from
21
and
22..
The
outstanding
auditor
general
recommendations
and
I
invite
officials
to
from
the
ministry
to
provide
opening
remarks
not
exceeding
10
minutes.
Your
time
begins
when
you
start
speaking.
Thank
you
over
to
you,
deputy.
G
Good
morning,
I'm
pleased
to
be
here
today
to
discuss
the
2021-2022
annual
report
for
Alberta
labor
and
immigration.
It's
actually
jobs
economy
in
Northern
development
now,
but
at
the
time
of
this
fiscal
year
was
Labor
and
immigration,
as
you're
likely
aware
of
the
honorable
report,
highlights
initiatives
that
previously
fell
under
the
ministry
I've
just
described,
some
of
which
now
fall
under
jobs,
economy,
Northern
development,
but
also
other
Ministries,
such
as
trade,
immigration,
multiculturalism,
as
well
as
skilled
trades
and
professions.
G
G
This
Public
Health
crisis
in
fiscal
2021-22,
the
second
year
of
the
pandemic,
the
ministry
continued
to
sport,
albertans
helping
them
earn
a
living
while
safeguarding
their
own
health
and
the
health
of
their
colleagues
and
loved
ones.
This
included
several
supports
for
Alberta,
albertans
and
job
creators
to
ensure
the
safety
of
workers
and
the
compliance
of
employers
to
reduce
the
spread
of
the
virus,
as
well
as
helping
keeping
businesses
and
our
economy
afloat
during
challenging
times.
G
Some
of
those
programs,
such
as
the
emergency
isolation,
Support
Program,
were
needed
almost
immediately
to
support
albertans,
who
had
to
isolate
due
to
covid-19
until
Federal
support
such
as
the
Serb
took
effect.
Critical
worker
benefit
helped
us
recognize
thousands
of
hard-working
albertans
who
delivered
critical
services
to
support
our
problems
during
the
pandemic
and
the
smaller
media.
Enterprise
relaunch,
ground
or
smirk
helped
support
the
recovery
of
businesses
impacted
by
the
public
health
restrictions,
support
on
to
support
albertan's
health
and
safety.
G
During
the
pandemic,
we
passed
the
employment
standards
Amendment
act,
also
known
as
the
covid-19
vaccination
leave
to
allow
all
provincially
regulated
employees,
the
option
of
three
hours
of
paid
job
protective
leave
to
receive
the
covid-19
vaccine
and,
as
Alberta
emerged
from
the
pandemic,
the
ministry
folk.
The
ministry
began
to
focus
on
economic
recovery
and
diversification,
as
well
as
the
long-term
vision
for
work
in
Alberta.
G
To
that
end,
the
ministry
launched
the
single
largest
jobs
training
program
in
Alberta's
history,
Alberta
jobs
now,
in
the
summer
of
2021
program,
allowed
employers
to
apply
for
Grants
to
cover
25
percent
of
an
employee's
salary
for
a
52-week
period
up
to
a
maximum
of
twenty
five
thousand
dollars
per
employee
employers
who
hired
people
with
disabilities,
received
a
ground
of
1.5
times
higher
than
the
amount
for
other
new
employees.
The
grant
could
be
used
to
cover
salary
or
training
costs.
As
of
fall
2022,
approximately
19
000
albertans
were
working
in
positions
approved
under
Alberta
jobs.
G
We
also
continue
to
connect
albertans
to
jobs
through
training
and
employment
services
delivered
across
the
province.
Our
various
training
for
work
programs
such
as
integrated
training,
self-employment
training
and
transition
to
employment,
supported
more
than
4
500
albertans
and
gaining
skills
to
support
meaningful
and
long-term
unemployed
long-term
employment.
G
As
pandemic
related
travel
restrictions
began
to
lift
the
borders
reopened.
We
also
took
steps
to
promote
Alberta's
advantages
and
benefits
as
a
place
to
work
and
raise
a
family.
This
included
the
rebranding
of
the
Alberta
Advantage
immigration
program
and
the
introduction
of
new
immigration
Pathways,
including
the
rural
renewal
stream
and
the
rural
entrepreneur
stream.
These
streams
are
intended
to
help
to
help
rural
Alberta
communities,
build
their
capacity
to
attract
and
retain
newcomers
and
entrepreneurs
to
contribute
to
local
economies,
but
by
providing
a
streamlined
path
towards
permanent
residency.
G
Approximately
300
individuals
attended
the
summit
both
in
person
and
virtually
representing
immigration,
immigrant
serving
organizations,
professional
regulatory
organizations,
newcomers
and
Community
Development
organizations
along
with
newcomers.
The
government
is
also
making
it
easier
for
Canadians
to
gain
their
certification
in
Alberta,
with
the
passing
of
the
labor
Mobility
act
in
December
2021..
This
act
helps
reduce
red
tape
by
creating
a
consistent
approach
to
recognizing
utter
Province
credentials
allowing
more
highly
skilled
Canadian.
G
Certified
professionals
come
to
Alberta
and
get
to
work
on
them
on
making
the
most
of
their
potential
potential
Ministry
of
Labor
and
immigration
also
led
the
government's
anti-racism
work
in
2122
in
June
2021.
The
Alberta
anti-racism
advisory
Council
released
its
recommendations
on
how
to
address
racism
in
the
province,
which
help
inform
the
government's
new
anti-racism
action
plan.
This.
A
G
Helping
ensure
Alberta's
is
a
place
of
opportunity
where
everyone
feels
welcome
and
free
to
pursue
their
dreams.
On
February
24
2022
Russia
launched
a
full-scale
invasion
of
the
Ukraine.
This
triggered
a
globally
humanitarian
crisis
with
Alberta
heating.
The
call
to
support
the
ukrainians
displaced
by
War
multiple
government
departments,
coordinated
a
provincial
approach
to
Ukrainian
arrivals
led
by
the
ministry
of
labor
and
immigration.
G
G
Enabling
access
to
important
settlement
and
support
services,
these
individuals
required
as
they
arrived
in
Alberta,
though
everything
through
everything
we
undertook
in
2122.
The
government
remained
committed
to
working
with
employers,
workers
and
partners
to
ensure
safe
and
healthy
workplaces.
This
included
beginning
work
to
update
the
occupational
health
and
safety
code
with
a
view
to
improving
outcomes
while
empowering
innovation.
G
The
employer's
health
and
safety
management
system
has
been
evaluated
by
a
certified
auditor
and
meets
provincial
standards
through
the
government's
commitment
to
reduce
red
tape.
The
court
program
simplified
and
combined
standard
program
standards,
eliminating
redundancies
and
obsolete
program
requirements,
and
the
results
were
impressive,
with
a
reported
22.6
percent
reduction
in
requirements
for
the
program
in
2122
fiscal
year.
G
G
And
its
agencies,
boards
and
commissions
have
also
reduced
overall
regulatory
requirements
by
16.9
percent.
Since
the
government's
red
tape
reduction
initiative
began
in
May
2019,
making
it
easier
for
job
creators
to
do
business
in
Alberta,
while
keeping
employees
safe
and
healthy
in
the
workplace
in
closing,
I
want
to
thank
you
for
the
opportunity
to
provide
an
overview
of
the
accomplishments
of
the
ministry
of
labor
and
immigration
in
fiscal
2122.
G
B
I
Thank
you,
madam
chair.
Our
audit
work
on
the
ministry
and
fiscal
21-22
included
examining
the
financial
reporting
of
the
department
and
the
financial
statements
of
the
Workers
Compensation
Board.
We
issued
an
unqualified
audit
opinion
on
the
wcb's
fiscal
2021
financial
statements.
We
have
two
outstanding
recommendations
with
the
Department
from
performance
work.
We
reported
in
the
past
year
in
May
2022
we
recommended
the
department
improve
performance
reporting
processes
related
to
its
first
nation
training
to
employment
and
Aboriginal
training
to
employment
programs.
I
We
found
performance
measures
and
targets
were
not
regularly
reviewed
for
continued
appropriateness
program.
Monitoring
was
informal
and
no
detailed
results.
Analysis
program
reporting
was
internal
and
focused
on
program
outputs
rather
than
on
the
achievement
of
program
objectives
and
Lessons
Learned.
The
department
has
provided
us
an
implementation
plan
which
we
are
currently
examining
to
determine.
If
planned,
improvements
would
adequately
would
adequately
deal
with
our
recommendation.
I
In
November
2022,
we
issued
a
recommendation
to
the
then
Ministry
of
jobs,
economy
and
Innovation
to
complete
processes
to
verify
eligibility
of
approved
applications
on
the
small
and
medium
Enterprise
relaunch
grant
program.
We
found
that
inadequate
verification
processes
were
completed.
To
conclude,
on
eligibility
of
approved
program
applicants,
the
department
assumed
responsibility
for
this
program
as
a
result
of
the
government
restructuring
in
October
2022.
We
have
not
received
an
implementation
plan
as
of
yet
from
the
department
and
look
forward
to
receiving
that
from
them
soon.
Thank
you.
B
Thank
you.
One
I'll
go
to
our
normal
questioning
rounds
just
for
to
remind
everyone.
We
are
in
the
four
rounds,
15
minutes
and
then
10,
10,
10
and
then
three
minutes
to
read
questions
into
the
record,
a
normal
two-hour
meeting.
So
with
that,
we
will
begin
with
the
official
opposition
for
15
minutes.
R
And
thank
you
all
for
being
here
today,
so
the
Alberta
jobs
now
program
created
a
stream
for
employers
to
hire
disabled
albertans,
which
is
great
to
see
by
the
way
employers
hiring
a
person
with
a
disability
can
apply
for
Grant
up
to
37.5
percent
of
the
new
higher
salary
up
to
37
500
per
employee.
Whichever
is
less
so.
Can
you
tell
me
in
the
first
two
intakes
how
many
disabled
employees
were
hired.
G
R
Can
I
just
ask
you
this
question
after
the
first
round,
I
know
that
there
was
some
discussion
in
the
annual
report
that
eligibility
or
the
things
criteria
were
changed.
Did
you
make
any
changes
based
on
the
really
dismal
number
of
disabled
employees
that
were
being
impacted
by
this?
This
really
great
program.
R
Program
was:
could
you
walk
me
through
the
process?
This
is
a
huge
investment
big
program
government's
really
proud
of
this.
Can
you
walk
me
through
the
process
that
your
depart?
Your
ministry
undertook
to
develop
this
stream
for
disabled
employees?
Who
did
you
consult
to
make
sure
that
you
got
it
right.
G
I,
don't
I,
don't
remember
specifically,
who
we
consulted,
but
I
do
remember
conversations
internally
within
the
department
about
specifically
attempting
to
access
or
facilitate
access
to
this
program
for
disabled
employees.
The
principal
policy
decision
was
to
increase
the
amount
of
the
financial
subsidy
and
the
principal
sort
of
challenge
that
we
faced
and
there
were
conversations
I'm
just
not
familiar
exactly
so.
R
So
I
know
in
the
annual
report
There
Was
You
Know
mention
of
there
were
quotes
from
people
talking
about
this
program.
There
was
an
article
in
CBC
May
21,
talking
about
CEO
of
helsim,
who
gave
advice
to
government
while
structuring
this
program.
So
there's
got
to
be
a
record
of
who
the
ministry
consulted
because
there's
a
lot
of
expertise
and
inclusive
employment
out
there,
a
ton
of
it
and
a
lot
of
disabled
employees
and
employers
that
are
I'm
sure
willing
to
provide
advice
to
government.
R
R
So
the
program
is
very
specific
about
the
two
streams
right,
so
you
could
be,
it
could
be
a
new
employee
or
it
could
be
an
existing
employees.
What
I'm
getting
at
is
of
the
two
percent
of
the
12
678,
two
percent
of
those
were
disabled,
how
many
were
already
employed
in
in
that
organization
or
company
and
how
many
were
new
employees?
R
So
if
you
could
get
that
and
give
that
back
to
the
community
or
to
the
committee,
that
would
be
great,
and
also
could
you
talk
about
the
range
of
accommodations?
Did
you
collect
any
information
about
what
employers
undertook
to
accommodate
disabled
employers,
because
that's
really
important
learning
for
any
organization
is
what
accommodations
were
required
by
employers
to
make
this
a
success.
So
could
you
tell
me
a
little
bit
about
that
work,
collecting
that
information
that
your
ministry
did
not.
R
Okay,
could
you
tell
me
so
you
mentioned
earlier
that
you
know
was
difficult
for
people
to
perhaps
self-identify
so
I'm,
assuming
those
would
have
been
employees
already
employed
within
an
organization
or
a
company.
But
could
you
tell
me
what
what
other
processes
were
in
place?
What
process
did
do
ministry
put
in
place
to
identify
that?
Yes,
indeed,
that
the
the
employee
was,
it
was
disabled,
was
there
a
box,
they
had
to
tick?
Was
it
some
kind
of
self-disclosure?
Was
there
an
accommodation
requirement?
R
Okay,
so
you
may
not
be
aware
there
are
like
really
extensive
processes
in
other
government
departments
and
programs
to
identify
disability
to
verify
that
someone
is
in
fact
disabled.
So
if
you
could
undertake
to
find
out
what
is
it
that
your
ministry
undertook
or
a
process
was
in
place
for
an
employee
to
identify
the
disability
and
perhaps
talk
about
any
accommodation
that
would
be
most
helpful.
R
Okay,
so
just
one
more
question
about
in
the
design
before
the
design
or
during
the
design.
So
I
know
I've
mentioned
this
before
probably
ad
nauseam,
but
there
are
a
couple
of
structures
within
government
already
that
are
in
place
to
provide
advice
to
Ministries.
So
one
of
those
is
the
premier's
council
and
the
status
of
persons
with
disabilities
they've
been
around
for
a
while.
That
is
their
function.
R
G
Just
advised
me
that
During
the
period
between
intake
one
and
intake
two,
because
we
were
trying
to
sort
of
learn
what,
in
terms
of
the
uptake
Etc
direct
Outreach,
was
made
to
interest
industry
associations,
Chambers
of
Commerce
and
disability,
focused
organizations
in
in
the
summer
of
21
to
seek
feedback
on
the
program
and
how
to
encourage
more
employers
to
hire
persons
with
disabilities
to
the
program.
So
there
was
Outreach
made
I
can
provide
you
further
information,
that'd.
R
Be
great
if
you
could
provide
the
committee
with
a
list
of
the
organizations
that
were
contacted,
that
would
be
great
okay,
I'm
going
to
go
back
to
another
area
here,
so
the
ministry
told
us
that
the
263
million
dollar
program,
so
we
know
152.5,
is
committed
in
this
reporting
period.
We
do
a
few
different
things,
so
one
it
would
encourage
employers
to
hire
trade.
New
staff
gain
current,
updated
skills.
Two
and
focus
on
the
hiring
of
under
unemployed
albertans
and
employers
were
also
able
to
fill
available
positions
with
employed
albertans.
R
R
You
will
check
then,
and
get
back
to
the
committee
on
what
were
the
specific
needs
that
businesses
had
to
identify
to
be
exempt
from
that
criteria
or
to
sort
of
circumvent
that
criteria.
Yep
correct,
okay,
perfect.
So
the
annual
report
indicates
the
Alberta
jobs
now
program
resulted
in
12,
678,
new
hires
or
two
intake
periods,
so
of
the
12
6
78.
How
many
jobs
total
were
filled
by
unemployed
albertans.
R
R
Can
okay?
So
if
you
could
get
back
to
the
committee
on
of
the
12
678,
how
many
were
new
jobs
and
how
many
were
vacant
positions?
Okay,
the
annual
report
notes
the
Alberta
jobs
now
program
was
designed
to
assist
employers
responding
to
labor
shortages.
Employers,
according
to
the
annual
report,
indicated
that
as
vacancy
Rose,
they
struggled
to
fill
those
vacancies
so
at
the
time
that
the
program
was
designed
what
data
was
used
to
support
those
statements.
R
G
Yeah,
so
so
we
have,
we
have
a
group
within
the
department
that
is
specifically
responsible
for
labor
market
information,
so
that
was
that
was
the
principal
group,
so
we
certainly
looked
to
that.
In
addition,
we
had
a
whole
host
of
information
around
various
sectors
and
people
in
those
sectors.
The
number
of
people
in
the
sector
is
that
type
of
information.
R
R
R
G
G
R
R
G
We
I
I've
I,
think
I've
undertaken
to
sort
of
give
answers
to
those
questions
and
I'm
happy
happy
to
do
that.
Like
I
would
also
say-
and
my
colleagues
just
reminded
me-
there
was
one
specific
change.
So
one
of
the
one
of
the
pieces
of
feedback
was
that
certain
on
average
folks
with
disabilities
were
working
fewer
hours
than
able-bodied
individuals,
and
so
we
reduced
that
requirement
from
30
hours
to
15
hours
to
attempt
to
accommodate
that
need.
So
that
was
the
one
specific
policy
change
that
was
made.
R
You
get
that
for
the
committee.
That
would
be
great.
I
would
appreciate
that
now.
Can
you
tell
me
so
you
are
already
by
the
committee,
the
breakdown
of
the
sectors.
So
can
you
tell
me,
do
you
have
a
breakdown
generally
of
you
know
how
many
of
these
12
678
new
jobs
or
existing
jobs,
we're
in
large
corporations,
as
opposed
to
small
and
medium
businesses,.
G
B
D
Well,
thank
you,
madam
chair
I.
Just
wanted
to
say
that
folks
who
live
in
the
cameras
constituency
are
often
interested
in
how
much
red
tape
is
being
reduced
by
our
government,
and
they
ask
me
these
questions
quite
frequently.
It's
something
that
I'm
very
proud
of
the
work
that's
being
accomplished.
So,
on
page
63
of
the
annual
report,
you
indicate
that
the
department
reduced
1800
requirements
over
the
course
of
the
year.
D
How
did
reducing
these
1800
red
tape
requirements
actually
make
things
better
for
Alberta
workers
and
employers,
and
on
page
63
and
64,
you
stayed
in
several
places
that
you
created
portals
to
help
reduce
red
tape.
Can
you
explain
how
these
portals
create
efficiencies
and
help
people
who
are
accessing
your
programs
and
services.
G
L
G
G
G
Land
agent
licensing
completed
an
in-depth
review
of
all
forms
and
policies
to
identify
areas
for
reducing
burden
while
maintaining
program
standards
and
compliance.
Land
agents,
licensing
was
able
to
reduce
regulatory
requirements
for
both
applicants
and
general
and
the
general
public
who
interact
with
the
office
Additionally.
The
department
undertook
administrative
burden
reduction
projects
related
to
improve
his
Service
delivery
and
speeding
up
approvals
for
Alberta
workers
and
employers.
G
The
Alberta
Advantage
immigration
program
expanded
services
available
to
online
applicants
by
in
an
online
portal
creating
a
One-Stop
service
shop
for
clients.
This
work
resulted
in
inefficiencies
that
allow
for
more
expedited
processing
of
these
types
of
applications,
streamlined
application
assessment
processes
produce
time
spent
on
assessing
files
and
resulted
in
more
timely
decisions
for
clients,
while
still
maintaining
program
integrity.
G
The
employment
standards
portal
eliminated
the
need
for
paper
permit
and
variance
applications.
The
Edge,
the
education,
Outreach
and
partnership
Outreach
form
was
streamlined
to
require
only
essential
information
and
allow
stakeholders
to
indicate
their
specific
preferences.
Paperless
certificates
of
recognition
are
now
produced
as
a
secure
electronic
form,
rather
than
as
a
printed
paper
certificate.
Employers
can
access
the
document
or
reprint
their
certificate
of
recognition
directly
through
the
wcb's
online
services.
A
G
Addition
in
December
the
government
committed
to
reviewing
the
OHS
legislation
and
Associated
regulations.
The
purpose
of
this
review
was
to
improve
outcomes
while
reducing
administrative
burden,
simplifying
requirements
and
language
and
remove
duplication
to
improve
Clarity,
evaluate
if
outcomes
can
be
improved
through
the
use
of
performance-based
requirements,
update
technical
Provisions
to
reflect
current
best
practices
for
OHS
and
align
the
OHS
code
with
other
provinces,
where
applicable,
the
OHS
accounts
for
a
substantial
portion
of
the
Department's
regulatory
requirements.
G
For
example,
the
portals
allow
albertans
and
job
creators
to
submit
applications
report
situations
related
to
employment
standards
and
occupational
health
and
safety
legislative
requirements
portals
make
it
easier
for
albertans
to
access
government
services
by
enabling
the
filing
of
complaints
or
submitting
application
reports
anywhere.
At
any
time,
online
allowing
users
to
save
progress
and
return
later
or
cancel
or
abandon
their
submission
and
automatically
pre-screening
for
jurisdiction
and
referencing
users
to
other
agencies
where
necessary.
G
Internal
benefits
include
reducing
the
time
spent
entering
data
by
automatically
transferring
data
into
our
compliance,
Management
systems
and
reducing
errors
and
improving
data
quality
by
relying
on
enhanced
data
validation
and
removing
the
requirement
for
manual
entry.
This
allows
the
staff
to
spend
more
time
on
Frontline
services
for
albertans
and
I
could
just
say
with
respect
to
this,
it's
sort
of
a
step-by-step
process,
but
in
particular
the
automation
process,
I
think,
is
really
effective
and
we're
really
proud
of
some
of
the
work
that
the
Department's
done
in
that
regard.
D
Well,
thank
you
so
much
I'm,
very
proud
of
the
work
that
you
and
your
team
have
accomplished.
Let's
switch
gears
a
little
bit
now
and
focus
on
jobs
now
program.
On
page
20
of
the
annual
report,
you
indicate
that
changes
were
made
to
the
second
intake
of
the
annual
sorry
Alberta
jobs
now
program
to
increase
uptake.
Can
you
tell
me
more
about
the
changes
to
the
program
and
how
the
changes
supported
the
province's
economic
recovery.
G
As
I've
already
discussed
to
some
degree
in
the
first
round
of
questioning
direct
Outreach,
direct
Outreach
was
made
to
Industry
associations,
the
Chambers
of
Commerce
and
disability,
focused
organizations
in
July
and
August
of
2021.
The
purpose
of
that
Outreach
was
to
seek
feedback
on
changes
to
the
program
and
how
to
encourage
more
employers
to
hire
persons
with
disabilities
to
the
program
in
intake.
Two
improvements
were
made
to
the
program
to
help
albertans
get
back
to
work
and
more
and
more
employers
find
the
help
they
need
to
assist
with
economic
recovery.
G
Opening
the
program
to
Alberta
businesses
and
non-profits
that
were
incorporated
or
registered
for
a
lot
for
less
than
a
year
was
one
of
the
changes
that
was
made.
Reducing
the
minimum
number
of
hours
employees
had
to
work
under
the
program
from
30
to
15
hours
per
week
was
one
of
the
pro
changes
that
were
made
well.
The
focus
was
on
hiring
unemployed
and
underemployed.
G
Albertans
employers
were
able
to
fill
available
positions
with
employed
albertans
if
there
was
a
business
need
which
was
already
discussed
in
the
first
round
of
questioning
and
then
finally
reducing
the
amount
of
time
employers
had
to
fill
position
or
actually
reducing.
The
number
of
positions
that
employers
could
apply
for
for
intake
from
20
to
10
was
an
attempt
to
spread
the
program
around
amongst
more
more
employers
themselves.
D
Again
for
the
good
work
that
you
and
your
team
have
accomplished:
let's
go
to
labor
Mobility
on
page
32
of
the
report.
It
talks
about
the
work
that
your
department
has
done
to
reduce
barriers
for
Canadians
licensed
in
other
jurisdictions.
You
mentioned
that
the
department
has
been
working
with
other
Canadian
jurisdictions
on
this
issue.
Can
you
expand
on
some
of
the
changes
that
you've
implemented
and
in
the
next
paragraph
the
report
says
that
the
average
processing
time
decreased
by
40
percent
from
2019
to
2020.?
What
was
the
average
processing
time
for
2021?
G
Part
of
the
sort
of
the
Cross
jurisdictional
work
that
we
do.
A
pan,
Canadian
labor
Mobility
working
group,
operates
under
the
Forum
of
Labor
Market
ministers
and
works
towards
removing
barriers
to
labor
Mobility
across
provinces
and
territories.
In
2021,
the
working
group
focused
on
improving
communication
and
transparency
of
Labor
Mobility
requirements
to
ensure
that
workers
in
regulated
occupations
can
benefit
from
opportunities
in
other
jurisdictions
and
from
streamline
from
streamline
certification
processes
for
domestic
Mobility
applicants
in
terms
of
the
processing
times
for
2021.
That
information
is
not
yet
available.
G
We're
currently
compiling
that
information,
we'll
provide
it
when
it's
available
and
in
terms
of
the
the
40
decrease.
How
is
that
and
she
achieved
during
2020
in
response
to
the
pandemic?
Many
regulatory
bodies
move
to
remote
work
and
increase
their
online
services,
making
more
accessible.
This,
in
particular,
decreased
to
allowed
us
to
decrease,
processing
processing
times
as
a
result.
D
C
F
A
C
I'd
like
to
turn
your
attention
to
the
Alberta
Advantage
immigration
program,
if
I
could
for
a
few
minutes
here
on
page
36,
you
mentioned
that
you
created
a
new
tech
pathway
under
the
express
entry
stream
for
the
Alberta
Advantage
immigration
program.
Now,
what
is
the
difference
between
a
stream
and
a
pathway
and
what
are
the
advantages
of
creating
a
tech
pathway,
and
why
did
you
create
a
pathway
for
that
particular
sector?
G
Thank
you.
Thank
you
for
the
questions
with
respect
to
the
difference
between
a
stream
and
a
pathway,
we'll
probably
have
to
do
some
work
on
on
choosing
some
different
terminology
in
the
future,
because
I
agree,
it
certainly
is,
can
be
challenging
for
for
people
to
understand
that
I
think
in
many
ways
people
view
those
terms
as
interchangeable.
G
G
R
G
G
There
are
time
and
cost
savings
for
employers,
because
the
pathway
has
no
employer
fees
and
if
the
worker
needs
work
permit
support
letter
from
aaip,
it
saves
the
employer
the
time
and
the
cost
of
the
lmiaa
process,
the
lmia
process
being
a
liberal
Market
impact
assessment
process
that
has
to
be
complied
with.
Otherwise,
your
final
question
I
think,
was
referencing
page
38
of
the
annual
report.
We
were
to
give
some
numbers
with
respect
to
retention
under
the
AAP
and
why
that's
important.
J
Thank
you,
madam
chair.
My
first
set
of
questions
deal
with
the
critical
worker
benefit
program,
which
is
discussed
on
page
21
of
the
annual
report
on
May
7th
of
2020.
The
federal
government
announced
347
million
dollars
of
funding
for
Alberta
to
provide
wage
top-ups
to
critical
workers
that
money
flowed
to
The
Province
on
June
1st
of
2020
and
by
the
end
of
the
summer
of
2020,
BC
and
Ontario
had
already
completed
the
rollout
of
their
programs.
Yet
phase
one
of
Alberta's
program
didn't
conclude
until
March
of
2021..
G
As
announced
in
2020,
but
then
also
announced
at
the
time
that
the
critical
worker
benefit
program
was
rolled
out
in
early
2021,
there
was
activity
that
was
undertaken
and
so
specifically
a
total
of
12
million
dollars
for
a
wage
Top-Up
for
health
care.
Workers
was
made
at
that
time
and
there
was
also
an
additional
18
million
dollars
for
designated
workers,
caring
for
Alberta's,
most
vulnerable
made
at
that
time.
G
So,
during
the
2020
time
period
there
was
activity
going
on
with
respect
to
that
program,
specifically
with
respect
to
those
two
initiatives,
and
then
there
was
a
request,
a
request
made
of
the
department
to
go
and
continue
to
work
not
only
to
help
with.
You
know
the
work
that
we've
done
with
respect
to
those
two
programs.
N
G
Also
to
reach
out
across
Ministries
and
develop
a
comprehensive
plan
with
respect
to
this
program,
and
so
both
the
initial
work,
but
also
the
work
that
took
place
ultimately
resulted
in
the
program.
We
were
hoping
to
have
it
sooner,
but
that's
ultimately
the
time
it
took
us
to
get
that
program
together
and
get
it
through
the
approval
process
and
roll
it
out.
I.
J
G
H
Yeah,
so
thanks
Sean
and
thanks
member
for
the
question,
so
the
the
465
million,
which
was
the
total
amount
for
the
entire
program,
would
have
provided
a
benefit
to
approximately
380
000
workers.
Ultimately,
with
the
amount
that
was
spent
across
the
entire
program,
we
ended
up
providing
a
benefit
to
just
under
344
000
workers,
344.
A
J
J
But
there's
37
000
albertans
that
you
expected
to
get
the
the
benefit
who
who
ultimately
didn't
because
and
and
I
think
this
is
important,
because
eligibility
requirements
were
a
significant
point
of
contention.
When
the
program
rolled
out,
the
government
set
the
number
of
hours
to
qualify
at
a
level
three
times
higher
than
most
other
provinces.
The
eligibility
period
also
did
not
include
people
who
were
working
during
the
first
wave
of
the
pandemic.
J
Many
workers
who
thought
that
they
were
critical
workers,
food
delivery,
drivers,
workers
in
retail,
allowed
to
stay
open
during
the
most
stringent
public
safety
measures
like
hardware
and
liquor
stores
were
not
eligible
for
the
program.
Ultimately,
the
government
spent
less
than
you
were
expecting
to
suggesting
that
the
eligibility
criteria
excluded
people
who
even
the
government
thought
should
have
qualified.
So
how
were
these
eligibility
criteria
set.
G
J
G
I,
don't
think
I,
don't
think
it
was
the
eligibility
criteria.
It
was
our
estimate
of
attempting
to
figure
out
how
many
people
were
in
the
various
buckets
and
how
to
design
the
program
in
a
way
that
allowed,
but
with
a
reasonable
estimate
of
the
number
of
people
who
would
apply
relative
to
the
funding
that
was
available,
and
so
it
turned
out
that
that
was
simply
very
challenging
and
we
oversubscribed
throughout
the
program
to
attempt
to
address
that
issue.
But
each
time
when
we
did
it,
we
didn't
want
to
have
a
huge
number
of
people
disappointed.
G
G
J
Okay,
so
at
we'll
dig
into
this
a
little
bit
more
at
some
point
during
the
fiscal
year
in
question,
it
must
have
become
clear
that
not
all
of
the
money
allocated
to
the
program
was
going
to
be
spent,
and
that
meant
thousands
of
albertans
expecting
a
Little
Help
From,
a
government
that
had
committed
to
help
them
would
be
left
on
their
own.
Was
the
minister
informed
prior
to
the
conclusion
of
the
program
that
all
not
all
the
money
allocated
to
this
program
was
going
to
be
spent.
G
G
J
J
Program
right
but
I
mean
even
during
the
second
phase
of
the
program.
It
must
have
become
clear
that
you
weren't
going
to
spend
all
of
the
money
allocated.
So
was
there
any
consideration
of
expanding
the
eligibility
beyond
what
had
already
been
expanded
in
phase
two
so
that
all
of
the
money
could
be
spent.
G
We
we
ran
the
program
for
two
phases:
we
expanded
the
eligibility
by
occupation
type
effectively.
In
the
second
phase,
there
was,
as
I
say,
approximately
five
percent
of
the
money
that
was
left
at
the
end
of
the
program
and
a
decision
was
made
to
to
not
go
ahead
with
so
who
made
that
decision.
The
decision
was
made
by
government.
J
N
B
C
G
Q
There
are
a
number
of
criteria
that
entrepreneur
needs
to
meet
and
they
relate
to
work
experience.
So
they
need
to
have
a
minimum
of
three
years
of
work
experience
in
an
active
business
as
a
owner
manager.
They
need
to
complete
a
minimum
of
high
school
equivalent
to
the
Canadian
standard.
They
need
to
have
a
business
plan
with
projected
financials
mid
language
requirements,
and
this
is
clb
for
that
is
required
for
this
particular
category.
Q
They
have
to
have
a
minimum
net
worth
of
300
000,
with
all
assets
being
the
candidate
or
partner's
own
personal
Holdings.
They
need
to
invest
a
minimum
of
two
hundred
thousand
into
the
business
and
they're
also
requirement
around
the
ownership
and
Creations
of
the
job.
There
is
a
requirement
that
we
need
to
create
at
least
one
full-time
job
for
Canadian
citizens
or
permanent
residents,
and
finally,
they
need
to
have
a
community
support
letter
from
a
participating
rural
Alberta
Community,
because
this
program
is
a
partnership
between
government
of
Alberta
and
communities.
Q
Communities
are
expressing
interests
of
being
part
of
this
program
and
they
are
enrolled,
and
then
they
are
posted
on
our
website.
So
a
potential
entrepreneurs
across
the
world.
They
have
their
aware,
which
Community
is
interested
in
them,
starting
the
business
in
this
community.
In
terms
of
achievement,
the
program
was
launched
above
rural
renewal
and
Rural
entrepreneur
program
was
launched
on
February
16
2022
during
the
premier
salmon
on
furnace
for
newcomers
So
within
the
annual
reports.
C
Okay,
so
let's
set
start
looking
at
employment
rates.
Okay,
page
41
of
the
report
shows
that
the
the
employment
rate
in
the
province
over
the
past-
it
shows
the
employment
rate
over
in
the
province
over
the
past
few
years
and
I
see
that
the
employment
rate
bounced
back
significantly
from
2020
to
2021.
C
So
what
factors
do
you
think
allowed
for
this
increase
to
happen?
How
did
this
employment
rate
compare
to
other
provinces,
and
the
report
mentions
that
municipalities
such
as
Lethbridge
Medicine,
Hat
cameras
and
Drumheller
had
the
lower
employment
rates
in
the
province
in
2021.?
What
factors
do
you
think
contributed
to
these
lower
employment
rates
based
on
previous
statistics?
Have
these
municipalities
consistently
had
a
lower
than
average
employment
rate.
G
Thank
you
for
the
question,
as
with
many
things,
employment
related.
There
are
a
variety
of
factors
related
to
that
in
this
case
that
that
rate
is
driven
by
a
number
of
factors,
including
the
economy,
demographics,
social
factors
and
others.
A
strong
economy,
in
particular,
can
have
a
positive
impact
on
the
employment
rate,
but
demographic
factors
like
aging
population
and
related
things
like
that,
can
have
certainly
a
negative
impact
on
it.
So
it's
sort
of
a
multi-faceted
indicator.
G
Certainly,
according
to
the
21-2030
Alberta
Occupational
Outlook,
a
labor
demand
and
Supply
forecast
for
Alberta
with
employment
levels
and
the
total
Supply
are
expected
to
steadily
rise
over
the
next
10
years.
As
a
result,
the
Outlook
suggests
that
the
employment
rate
will
remain
stable
over
the
coming
years,
which
is
obviously
a
good
thing
for
us
in
terms
of
how
this
compares
to
other
provinces,
maybe
I'll
just
start
by
saying
just
defining
it.
G
Finally,
with
respect
to
your
question
related
to
a
specific
municipalities,
cameras,
Drum,
Heller
and
Lethbridge
medicine
had
have
historically
had
lower
employment
rates
relative
to
other
economic
regions
in
Alberta.
The
primary
contributing
factor
to
lower
lower
employment
rates
in
these
regions
is
an
older
population
with
a
higher
proportion
over
65,
which
is
which
I've
indicated
as
part
of
the
calculation,
but
obviously
a
group
that
tends
to
be
employed
at
a
lesser
rate.
So.
N
Good
morning,
I
hope
it's
not
that
snowy
as
it
is
in
Calgary
for
everybody
else
out
there.
It
has
probably
still
not
about
at
least
four
and
a
half
for
the
last
24
hours.
But
my
question
here
is
rated.
It
led
to
OHS
operations,
occupational
health
and
safety
and
I
note
that
on
page
44
a
number
of
inspections
conducted
each
year
and
I
specifically
know
the
year
2020
2021
were
in
that
year.
G
E
Deputy
so
in,
in
short,
the
the
pandemic
brought
about
a
new
Hazard
to
to
deal
with
in
the
workplace
that
played
out
in
terms
of
our
inspection
activity.
Certainly
within
the
first
year
of
the
the
pandemic,
our
inspection
numbers
Rose
significantly,
and
it
did
come
down
a
bit
the
second
year,
but
we're
still
higher
than
a
pre-pandemic
levels.
So
the
primary
driver
is
is
that
there
were.
N
E
Thank
you
for
that.
For
that
question,
we're
always
refining
our
our
approach
within
occupational
health
and
safety.
Our
officers
have
a
variety
of
tools
at
their
disposal
to
to
ensure
that
compliance
with
legislative
standards
is
met,
and
the
writing
orders
is
one
one
of
those
tools.
However,
we
have.
We
have
noticed
that
there
are
many
situations
where
our
officer
in
the
course
of
conducting
an
inspection
can
basically
get
compliance
on
the
spot.
E
Noting
a
a
non-compliance
asking
the
worksite
parties
to
take
corrective
action,
it's
done
on
the
spot
and
and
new
orders
are
are
written.
That's
a
more
efficient
process
gets
gets
what
what
we
need
in
terms
of
getting
compliance
with
legislative
standards
and
gets
to
work
site
parties
back
to
doing
their
regular
work
quicker.
N
N
M
M
B
J
J
This
is
a
stark
contrast
to
other
provinces
which
designed
their
programs
to
allow
for
employees
to
apply
directly.
The
government
also
committed
more
than
30
million
dollars
when
they
announced
the
program
to
employers
for
their
so-called
administrative
costs,
but
the
report
doesn't
mention
how
much
was
ultimately
given
to
employers
for
their
administrative's
costs.
So
what
was
that
number.
H
H
The
so
to
answer
the
first
piece
around
the
administration
costs.
So
what
occurred
was
we
in
order
to
deliver
through
employers?
We
added
a
7.66
in
terms
of
funding
on
to
the
payments
that
we
were
providing,
and
that
was
to
cover
the
costs
of
CPP
and
EI
that
they
may
have
in
terms
of
payroll
expense
to
provide
the
benefit
to
their
employees.
H
J
H
H
The
number
of
employees
that
would
have
received
the
benefit
wasn't
affected
by
the
payroll
cost
that
was
calculated
into
the
program
so
once
again
to
to
go
back
to
the
question
in
terms
of
the
overall
uptake,
the
uptake
was
was
not
what
we
were
hoping
and
what
we
expected
in
terms
of
the
total
amount,
but
it
wouldn't
have
prevented
us
from
providing
the
benefits
to
every
eligible
worker.
Had
there
been
enough
applying
for
the
program,
So.
G
J
G
So
we
are
doing
verification
work.
Currently,
we
think
that
the
principal
outstanding
matter
relies
or
relates
to
whether
that
funding
was
in
fact
transferred
from
employers
to
employees.
We
don't
have
any
reason
to
believe
that
it
wasn't.
We
don't
have
any
evidence
there
wasn't,
but
that's
the
only
remaining
outstanding
sort
of
audit
type
of
work.
J
J
H
Thank
you
so,
and
thanks
for
the
question
so
just
just
to
expand
on
that
there
was.
There
was
employees
and
folks
were
able
to
contact
the
department
with
any
questions
that
they
might
had.
We
received
a
significant
number
of
inquiries
related
to
the
program,
primarily
the
the
inquiries
were
related
to
eligibility
criteria
and
just
essentially
asking
whether
or
not
they
were
eligible
for
the
program
and
in
all
of
the
communication
that
we
received
through
call
centers
and
through
direct
contact
with
The
Minister's
office
and
through
through
the
department.
H
To
that
part
of
me,
as
the
deputy
mentioned,
we're
currently
undertaking
the
the
the
post
payment
verification
reaching
out
to
a
sample
of
employers,
but
the
program
did
have
in
place
what
we
refer
to
as
a
certificate
of
Grant
recipients.
So
the
Employers
in
the
private
sector
that
labor
and
immigration
had
delivered
to
were
required.
H
They
were
required
to
fill
out
a
form
and
submit,
as
part
of
their
Grant
agreement,
essentially
indicating
that
all
of
the
eligible
employees
that
they
had
applied
for
had
received
the
benefit
and
we'd
received
that
form
from
all
of
our
employers.
There
was
only
a
select
few
who
we
had
to
do
some
additional
follow-up
on,
but
virtually
all
of
the
Employers
in
the
private
sector
side
had
provided
that
to
us,
which
gave
us
a
further
confidence
that
the
the
employees
had
received
their
benefit.
Thank.
J
You
thank
you
very
much.
I
quickly
want
to
shift
now
to
the
fair
practices,
the
fair
registration,
Practices
Act
and
the
fairness
for
newcomers
office,
which
is
discussed
on
page
39
of
the
annual
report.
How
many
foreign
trained
professionals
are
currently
living
in
Alberta,
but
are
not
working
in
their
profession,
because
their
qualifications
aren't
recognized
just
looking
for
a
number.
J
You
thank
you
very
much
follow
up
great
now.
One
of
the
objectives
in
the
Act
and
the
office
is
to
ensure
that
regulatory
bodies
provide
an
interim
registration
decision
within
six
months.
In
the
Baseline
survey
summary
published
in
December
2021,
it
was
indicated
that
this
was
an
objective
that
many
regulatory
bodies
struggle
to
meet
in
that
future
reporting
on
this
objective
would
be
forthcoming.
J
Q
So
the
best
one
2020-
and
there
was
a
a
few
Regulators-
were
identified
that
they
are
not
meeting
the
interim
decision
timeline
of
six
months
and
the
furnace
for
newcomers.
Office
has
worked
with
those
professional,
regular
regulatory
bodies
to
help
them
streamline
processes
and
ensure
that
they
are
compliant
with
the
ACT
in
terms
of
in
2021.
There
were
follow-up
survey
done
and
the
data
were
analyzed
and
that
work
is
now
with
skilled
trains
and
professions
and
since
since
October.
Q
J
Q
Collected
and
under
the
legislation,
so
yes,
we
are
self-reported
data,
they
are
analyzed
by
the
team.
If
there
are
any
questions
on
the
data,
there
are
follow-up
meetings
and
set
up
with
Regulators
to
ask
follow-up
questions
and
there
are
any
instances
when
information
might
be
not
clear
or
with
the
Department
had
some
needed
clarifications.
There
were
different
mechanisms
to
seek
further
information
and
confirm
that
information
is
correct,
but
that
it
was
received.
J
Q
So
these
programs
that
are
discussed
on
annual
on
page
40,
they
were
to
intended
to
develop
online
tools.
So
we
didn't
measure
how
many
albertans
were
actually
successful
in
obtaining
jobs,
because
that
was
not
objectives
of
the
programs.
So
the
mentorship
connection
program
was
to
develop
online
tools
that
could
be
used
in
small
areas
in
rural
areas
and
help
people
to
understand
mentorship
concept
and
online
alternative
career
process.
Part.
B
N
Thank
you
and
I
will
continue
with
my
last
last
question,
which
is
related
to
mystery
of
Labor,
not
mystery
of
multiculturalism
and
immigration.
The
number
of
business
contacted
for
the
first
time
also
seemed
highly
variable.
Why
was
2021
2022
such
an
outlier
compared
to
the
previous
two
years?
What
is
the
long-term
average
for
that.
E
One
of
the
things
that
shifted
is
that,
like
just
about
everywhere,
where
else
in
the
world
of
work,
we
made
greater
use
of
technology
and
began
accomplishing
the
the
objectives
of
that
program
through
through
phone
through
video
conference
and
enabled
us
to
significantly
expand
our
reach
in
terms
of
contacting
new
employers.
The
content
of
the
discussions
with
the
new
employers
Remains,
the
Same,
the
types
of
information
provide
about
occupational
health
and
safety
and
employment
standards
Remains
the
Same.
E
N
Thank
you,
I'm
still,
looking
at
page
44
of
the
annual
report,
which
mentions
that
this
changes
to
part
13
and
part
20
of
the
occupational
health
and
safety
code
came
into
fact
on
December
1st
2021..
Can
you
tell
me
more
about
the
process
the
mystery
used
to
determine
these
changes
and
and
what
was
the
feedback
you
received
on
the
changes
to
part
13
and
part
20
of
the
OHS
board
from
the
Alberta
industry
and
businesses.
E
A
E
As
part
of
that
review,
we
looked
at
requirements
for
health
and
safety
committees
and
representatives
as
well
as
radiation
safety.
The
intent
was
to
develop
a
framework
for
these
areas
in
the
OHS
act,
while
moving
technical
details
to
the
OHS
code
with
respect
to
part
20,
which
relates
to
radiation
of
the
OHS
code,
Frontline
Department
staff
recognized
there
was
duplication
between
the
former
OHS
Act
and
the
radiation
protection
act.
E
This
created
confusion
because
many
work
sites
did
not
recognize
that
both
acts
applied
to
radiation
hazards.
At
the
same
time,
while
there
was
considerable
overlap
between
the
two
former
acts,
the
requirements
were
not
identical,
which
contributed
to
further
confusion
and
the
the
process
was
to
move
forward
to
to
reconcile
those
differences
and
have
have
all
of
those
rules
contained
in
in
one
place
being
the
OHS
code
from
a
process
perspective.
The
the
department
conducted
consultations.
E
In
the
summer
of
2020,
this
included
an
online
survey
as
well
as
virtual
stakeholder
sessions.
The
survey
was
open
to
the
public,
received
total
of
320
responses
for
the
OHS
changes
in
12
for
the
radiation
changes.
This
included,
47
unions,
labor
associations,
industry
associations,
employer
groups
and
health
and
safety
or
professional
associations
whose
input
the
ministry
specifically
asked
for
with
respect
to
part
13,
which
is
health
and
safety
committees.
E
The
OHS
code,
where,
where
they
exist
now,
the
feedback
has
generally
generally
been
positive.
With
respect
to
to
these
changes
with
respect
to
the
changes
around
radiation
protection,
I
think
the
it's
a
it's
a
smaller
set
of
stakeholders
that
deal
with
that
issue
in
in
workplaces,
but
that's
those
changes
have
been
generally
well
received
and
feedback
with
respect
to
health
and
safety
committees
has
generally
been
positive
in.
In
that
greater
Clarity
is
now
provided
to
work
site
parties.
N
E
It's
thank
you
for
that.
So,
under
the
OHS
act,
the
minister
is
required
to
publish
a
plan
for
the
review
of
the
OHS
code
every
three
years.
The
OHS
code
is
a
ministerial
regulation
that
contains
all
of
the
technical
requirements
and
rules
that
workplaces
must
follow
to
keep
workers
healthy
and
safe
technical
requirements
in
the
code
require
regular
updates
to
keep
Pace
with
changing
workplace
practices,
evolving
Technologies
and
other
emerging
issues,
and
also
to
ensure
interjurisdictional
harmonization
to
support
labor
mobility
and
trade.
E
The
the
it's
also,
it's
important
that
these
these
reviews
and
updates
are
done
on
a
routine
basis
to
ensure
that
the
codes
requirements
keep
Pace
with
those
standards
and
don't
become
out
of
date.
The
OHS
code
review
plan
is
published
and
provides
albertans
with
an
understanding
of
the
OHS
code,
review,
work
that
is
being
conducted
on
a
year
by
year
basis
and
that
enables
interested
stakeholders
to
kind
of
plan
and
organize
how
they're
going
to
participate
in
the
in
the
process.
P
G
E
G
E
K
Thank
you,
madam
chair,
and
thank
you
to
the
officials
for
being
here
today
to
answer
our
questions.
I
want
to
begin
by
asking
about
the
anti-racism
advisory
Council,
which
is
mentioned
very
briefly
on
page
19
of
the
annual
report,
so
just
for
confirmation,
The
anti-racism,
Advisory
Council
was
first
established
in
2017
and
then,
of
course,
the
recommendations
were
made
by
the
council,
which
took
some
time
to
be
disclosed
to
the
public.
But
the
ministry
took
over
responsibility
for
the
council
in
the
fiscal
year
under
consideration.
Is
that
correct?
Q
Q
So
in
terms
of
the
how
we
worked
with
the
council-
and
so
we
received
this,
we
received
the
council's
recommendations
and
they
were
disclosed
in
2021
to
the
public
and
we'll
use
both
recommendations
as
foundations
for
the
development
of
action
plan.
So
there
was
a
photo
analysis
conducted
in
terms
of
each
recommendations
that
was
provided
by
the
council
and
all
those
recommendations
laid
foundations
and
some
were
reflected
in
the
action
plan
that
was
released
in
2022.
K
Thank
you
for
that,
so
obviously
the
ministry
then,
is
still
playing
a
key
role
in
coordinating,
and
we
know
the
action
plan
contains.
You
know,
work
that
has
to
be
done
across
many
Ministries,
including
what
was
Labor
and
immigration.
So
how
does
the
how?
What
role
is
the
ministry
continuing
to
play
and
now,
at
that
time,
what
was
the
plan
to
actually
coordinate
that
work
and
what
were
the
targets
and
performance
measures
to
ensure
that
that
action
plan
was
being
completed?.
Q
So
the
the
ministry
had
ADM
committee,
that
comprises
of
a
number
of
departments
across
across
the
government
of
Alberta
important
meetings,
were,
were
held
to
discuss
council's
recommendations
and
also
the
development
of
the
action
plan,
and
that
was
a
very
coordinated
effort.
But
government
undertook
to
ensure
that
the
action
plan
would
go
if
it's
going
to
be
released,
reflects
a
very
comprehensive
work
that
is
done
by
the
department
and
also
reflects
recommendations
we've
received
from
the
council.
Thank.
K
You,
if
I,
if
I
may,
it
was
quite
disappointing
to
see
how
little
the
work
of
the
advisory
Council
the
anti-racism
work
was
reflected
in
this
annual
report
and
considering
it
is
a
major
commitment
by
the
government.
It
should
be
at
least
a
major
commitment.
It
should
be
reflected
in
the
work
of
the
ministry
that
is
leading
that
Council
works.
So
I
would
just
that's
a
recommendation
for
the
ministry
going
forward.
K
I
want
to
go
back
to
the
Alberta
Advantage
immigration
program
streams
and,
in
particular
talking
about
the
rural
renewal
stream
and
the
rural
entrepreneur
stream
as
I
see
from
the
annual
report
on
page
36.
It
does
it.
You
know
it
indicates
that
there's
there's
no
real
uptake
on
that
yet
or
very
nothing
to
report
I
suppose
on
that
uptake.
So
what
are
the
targets
for
those
two
particular
streams
from
the
ministry
in
terms
of
applications
and
approvals.
Q
So,
in
terms
of
rural
renewal,
how
the
how
the
stream
Works
it's
really
two-step
process-
and
it's
really
Community
Driven
Stream
So
Community-
applies
to
to
government
of
Alberta
to
Alberta
Advantage
integration
program
and
they
put
forward
the
application
indicating
that
they
want
to
be
part
of
the
program
we
have
now.
Since
the
launch
of
the
program
in
February
22
22,
we
have
received
over
60.
Q
We
have
approved
over
60
communities
to
participate
in
the
program
once
the
community
is
approved,
they
start
the
recruitment
process
and
they
attract
workers
from
abroad.
So
we
are
expecting
a
very
steady
flow
of
applications.
Given
the
number
of
communities
that
are
enrolled
in
this
program
in
terms
of
the
Rural
Entrepreneurship,
the
program
works
somewhat
similar,
it's
also
driven
by
the
community.
Q
They
need
to
be
interested
in
the
program
of
a
they
identified
to
us,
but
they
want
to
participate
that
they
are
ready
to
welcome
entrepreneurs
or
they
have
some
businesses,
but
they
potentially
are
thinking
that
could
be
sold
sold
and
they
interact
directly
with
entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurs
need
to
come
and
do
exploratory.
K
Visit,
thank
you
very
much.
Sorry
I'm
just
going
to
cut
you
off
a
little
bit
just
because
of
time.
So
then
it
just
it
doesn't
sound
like
there's.
Actually
a
Target,
though
it
sounds
like
it's
being
driven
by
perhaps
interest
from
the
rural
communities,
but
there's
no
target
by
the
ministry
so
I'm
that
was
sort
of
that
does
answer
my
question.
Q
Q
We
worked
with
those
agencies,
they
identified
some
areas
for
improvement
and
we
adjusted
criteria.
We
lowered
the
language
Benchmark
from
clb
7
to
clp5,
and
we
also
extended
the
education.
So
initially
we
were
looking
to
Target
entrepreneurs
who
graduated
within
the
past
two
years,
and
we
extended
this
criteria
to
the
10-year
time
frame
to
help
with
the
intake.
We
also
made
some
changes
to
the
international
grad
stream,
which
is
focused
on
Alberta
graduate
and
we
removed
the
work
requirement.
Q
K
And
yet
we
know
that
child
care
sector
was
not
eligible
for
the
jobs
now
program,
despite
there
being
a
significant
labor
shortage
at
the
time
and
continuing
to
this
day,
to
the
point
that
the
Goa
is
now
actively
recruiting
Child
Care
Educators.
So
why
was
the
child
care
sector
excluded
from
this
critical
program
when
Child
Care
was
supposedly
a
key
part
of
the
economic
recovery
plan
of
this
government?.
G
They
don't
have
a
I,
don't
have
a
specific
response
for
you
right
now.
We
had
many
many
discussions
on
various
sectors
that
would
be
included
and
wouldn't
be
included,
based
on
the
volume
of
people
by
occupational
code,
and
so
I'd
have
to
go
back
and
refresh
my
memory
as
to
the
discussion
in
that
regard.
K
And
specifically,
can
you
the
the
annual
report
on
page
28
indicates
some
of
the
programs
that
received
funding,
but
it
doesn't
indicate
how
much
funding
was
actually
provided
to
each
of
the
programs,
the
First
Nations
training
to
employment
and
the
Aboriginal
training
to
Employment
Program.
So
how
much
was
allocated
to
each
of
those
programs.
K
Given
time,
perhaps
I'll
just
ask
that
you
table
that
information
with
the
committee
afterwards,
as
well
as
whether
that
was
a
full
budgeted
amount
for
those
programs.
I
was
actually
spent
if
you
can
table
that
information,
but
what
what
are
the
targets
and
and
the
objectives
for
and
performance
evaluations
for
this,
for
these
two
programs
are
now
the
one
program.
G
So
We
are
continuing
the
work
with
respect
to
the
Auditors
program,
but
generally
these
programs
are
Partnerships
with
with
First
Nation
communities,
both
on
and
off
reserve,
and
it's
it's
a
capacity
building.
It's
an
employment
related
program
and
and
the
goal
is
to
increase
employment
both
on
and
off
Reserve.
B
P
E
Thank
you.
So
you
had
asked
in
general
terms
what
the
certificate
certificate
of
recognition
program
is
all
about.
It's
a
program
that
was
established
in
1989
to
encourage
Alberta
employers
to
build
occupational
health
and
safety
Management
systems
and
take
a
proactive
approach
to
reducing
the
human
and
financial
costs
of
work-related
injuries
and
illness.
E
E
We
we
think
there
is
tremendous
value
in
employers
implementing
a
a
health
and
safety
management
system
that
meets
that
meets
program
standards
and
is
subject
to
subject
to
audit.
Taking
a
systems
approach
to
preventing
injuries
and
illness
pays
off
immensely
in
terms
of
preventing
preventing
preventing
injuries
at
the
work
site.
And
in
addition,
as
I
mentioned,
the
program
results
in
employers
becoming
eligible
for
additional
savings
through
through
the
workers.
Compensation
system.
P
A2
and
my
next
virtual
will
be
for
the
employment
standard
complaint
resolutions.
If
you
look
at
page
54
of
the
annual
report,
which
indicates
that
the
average
days
to
begin
an
employment
standard
investigation,
it
decreased
significantly
from
26
days
in
2020
to
2021
to
just
12
days
in
the
past
year,
while
the
number
of
complaints
remained
relatively
stable.
So
the
question
is,
can
you
tell
me
how
the
ministry
was
able
to
significantly
improve
the
performance
in
this
area?.
E
Thank
you
for
that
question.
Timely
resolution
of
employment
standards.
Complaints
is
a
priority
for
for
the
department
and
the
employment
standards
program
over
over
the
fiscal
year
in
question
and
previous
years,
the
department
worked
to
maintain,
maintain
timely,
fair
and
quality
services
to
to
employers
and
employees,
really
in
terms
of
the
reduction
in
the
amount
of
time
to
begin
at
investigations
or
a
number
of
factors
that
came
together
kind
of
all
at
once.
E
The
the
department
and
the
program
had
made
significant
efforts
to
streamline
our
internal
processes
to
to
reduce
reduce
the
time
it
takes
us
to
to
get
things
moving
and
to
to
do
our
our
work,
and
so
that
played
a
big
big
part
of
that.
In
addition,
well,
you
noted
that
the
complaint
levels
in
2020,
21
and
2021-22
remained
relatively
stable
for
both
of
those
years.
P
P
E
Thank
you
for
the
question,
so
voluntary
resolution
is
the
the
preferred
or
first
approach
for
employment
standards.
Officers
to
resolve
disputes
through
education
and
sharing
information.
Both
parties
to
a
complaint
are
in
a
position
to
to
resolve
their
differences
and
and
and
reach
compliant.
We
find
that
this
approach
is
more
efficient,
less
time
consuming
and
and
provides
Fair
outcomes
for
both
parties.
That
said,
as
you
note,
there
are
circumstances
where
voluntary
resolution
cannot
be
achieved.
O
Thank
you
on
on
page
22
of
the
annual
report.
I'm
referring
Canada
Alberta
job
grant
program,
so
I
noticed
that
there
was
a
significant
increase
in
the
number
of
Canada
Alberta
job
Grant
applications
approved,
so
it
went
up
from
5031
in
2020
21
to
9024
applications
approved
in
2122,
and
the
annual
report
also
mentions
changes
were
made
to
the
program
eligibility
in
February
2021.
G
Thank
you
for
the
for
the
question.
The
Canada
Alberta
job
Grant,
as
you
may
know,
is
a
federal
provincial
partnership
through
which
Employers
in
government
share
the
cost
of
training.
Alberta
employees
chag
aims
to
increase
employer
investment
and
training
productivity
worker
skills
and
worker
retention.
I
would
say
that
it's
really
the
sole
real
employer-funded
program
on
an
ongoing
basis
that
the
government
has
the
initial
21
22
budget
for
chag
was
13.4
million
dollars.
G
Additional
mid-year
adjustments
brought
the
total
budget
to
31.4
million
in
response
to
principally
higher
employer
demand
for
the
program.
The
program
is
funded
using
a
combination
of
Labor
Market
development
agreement
and
Workforce
Development
agreement
allocations
in
terms
of
the
portion
of
your
question.
Referencing
changes
in
February
2021,
a
temporary
program
changes
were
made
to
encourage
economic
recovery
in
response
to
the
pandemic,
changes,
expanded
eligibility
criteria,
making
the
program
more
accessible
to
small
employers
and
family
owned
and
operated
businesses.
G
G
O
I'll
get
back
to
you
for
time
permits,
but
I
also
want
to
ask
another
important
question
about
Alberta
immigrant
mentorship,
Innovation
Grant,
that's
a
great
program
which
is
intended
to
support
immigrants
to
use
their
professional
skills
and
contribute
to
Alberta's
economy.
So
could
you
tell
me
more
about
that
grant
program
and
also
about
the
organizations
or
types
of
organizations
that
received
such
funding
briefly,.
G
Organizations
in
delivering
mentorship
programs
that
help
newcomers
find
meaningful
employment
based
on
their
work,
experience,
education
and
skills.
It
does
this
by
matching
newcomer
professionals
with
mentors
new
new
albertans
can
establish
professional
connections
that
help
them
find
meaningful
employment
and
strengthen
Alberta's
Workforce.
G
The
grants
has
intended
to
support
immigrants
to
use
their
professional
skills
and
contribute
to
Alberta's
economy.
The
grant
also
aims
to
increase
employer
and
Community
capacity
to
provide
mentorship
programming
to
have
a
positive
effect
on
labor
attraction
and
retention
efforts.
Maybe
I'll
just
quickly
say,
with
respect
to.
K
Page
31
of
the
annual
report
indicates
that
the
iqas
issued
almost
18
000
assessment
certificates,
which
is
1
000
fewer
than
the
year
before,
and
4
500
fewer
than
in
2019.
Can
the
department
indicate
why
they
believe
there's
been
a
decrease?
Has
there
been
fewer
requests
for
assessments
or,
and
what
does
the
ministry
attribute
that
decrease
to
with
respect
to
the
Alberta
Advantage
immigration
program
streams?
K
What
is
the
average
length
of
time
for
approvals
of
applications
in
2021
by
stream,
and
how
does
this
compare
with
other
provinces
and
jurisdictions
with
Kent
with
respect
to
red
tape?
Production
page
62
of
the
annual
report
states
that
in
2021
the
ministry
reduced
1812
regulatory
requirements
as
part
of
its
red
tape.
Production
objectives:
please
table
with
this
committee
a
detailed
list
of
each
of
the
1812
regulatory
requirements
that
was
eliminated
or
reduced
in
2021
with
respect
to
the
Fair
Fair
practices.
Registration.
K
What
are
the
barriers
preventing
regulatory
bodies
from
achieving
the
six
month
decision
time
frame
in
the
opinion
of
the
ministry
is
its
Staffing
and
if
so,
did
the
government
make
any
estimates
as
to
the
additional
cost
to
the
regulatory
agencies
for
achieving
these
timelines?
And
who
does
the
government
anticipate
to
cover
those
costs?
Is
it
government
or
the
members
of
the
Regulatory
Agencies
through
their
membership
fees
and
I'll
turn
over
the
remaining
time
to
my
colleague
at
MLA
Renault?
Oh.
R
Thank
you,
so
jobs
now
program
could
would
you
please
table
with
the
committee
the
the
average
earnings
of
the
two
percent
of
disabled
employees
in
the
jobs
now
program
and
what
the
range
was
so
the
low
end
and
the
high
end
as
well
for
non-disabled
workers,
so
the
98
of
the
12
687,
what
the
salary
range
was
for
those
12
687
positions,
the
low
and
the
high
as
well.
The
ministry
agreed
to
give
us
a
breakdown
of
the
12
687
jobs
by
sector.
R
B
B
Okay,
very
to
everyone
and
I'd
like
to
thank
you
for
job's
economy
in
Northern
development
and
the
office
of
the
auditor
general
further
participation
in
responding
to
committee
members
questions.
The
committee
asked
that
any
outstanding
questions
be
responded
to
in
writing
within
30
days
and
forwarded
to
the
committee
Clerk
now
moving
on
honorable
members
at
our
meeting
last
week
on
February
14th,
the
committee
was
advised
that
a
draft
annual
report
to
the
legislature
on
the
committee's
activities
during
the
calendar
year
2022
would
be
prepared.
B
B
I'm
not
seeing
any
discussion
on
this
matter
right
now,
I'm
just
going
to
look
to
the
floor
one
more
time
because
I'm
not
in
the
room,
giving
people
a
chance
to
pipe
up.
Okay,
then
I'll
ask
that
someone
move
that
the
standing
Committee
on
Public
Accounts
approved
the
draft
2022
annual
report
of
the
committee
to
the
Legislative
Assembly
as
distributed.
B
B
B
All
right
seeing
none,
then
that
motion
is
carried
friends,
we'll
move
on
to
item
six
on
our
agendas.
This
may
be
the
final
meeting
of
the
committee
prior
to
the
dissolution
of
the
30th
legislature.
The
committee
should
consider
how
it
will
approve
the
minutes
of
today's
meeting.
A
process
recently
followed
by
some
other
committees,
has
been
to
authorize
the
chair
to
approve
the
final
minutes
after
they've
been
distributed
to
committee
members
for
their
review.