The GNWT is reducing office hours including at the department of Education, Culture and Employment in the North Slave Regional and Community Service Centres in Yellowknife and Behchokǫ̀. While officials with the department say the reduced hours are currently temporary, they added it may become permanent.
The Department of Education, Culture and Employment’s North Slave Regional and Community Service Centres in Yellowknife and Behchokǫ̀’s office hours will change beginning Dec. 3.
Agata Gutkowska with the department says similar measures are underway at other GNWT departments.
Gutkowska explains that residents will still be able to connect with a client navigator, career development officer, or early childhood consultant during the new office hours.
Gutkowska said that the reduced hours are “temporary” and were enacted because of “higher demand” at this time as well as “complex client needs.”
“The temporary reduction in public office hours will provide staff with dedicated, uninterrupted time to complete assessments, work through client files, and manage other administrative tasks. This helps ensure that files are processed accurately and efficiently, which ultimately improves service delivery for residents. These changes were introduced now in response to higher demand and increasingly complex client needs in the North Slave Region. By creating protected time for staff to complete their work, we are supporting both timely decision-making and application processing, and consistent program delivery across the region.”
While the change in hours is currently a temporary protocol, it may become permanent depending on what an assessment finds.
“At the six-month mark, ECE will review the impact of the adjusted hours on both clients and staff. This assessment will help determine whether the offices return to their previous hours, maintain the adjusted schedule, or require further refinement based on what best supports effective service delivery,” said Gutkowska.
Gutkowska explained that previously, the Yellowknife and Behchokǫ̀ Service Centres were open to the public 8:30 am to 5:00 p.m.
“The new hours—9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.—represent a reduction of one and a half hour per day of public access,” said Gutkowska.
In November, the federal government released the budget which weighed heavily on infrastructure investment with proposed cutbacks to a number of public services, but Gutkowkska says the change is not related to layoff or cutbacks.
“No, this change is not related to lay-offs or cutbacks, as no client services positions have been removed at ECE. Over the last year, there has been an increase in clients and more complex files, which means staff need additional time to complete the necessary administrative work. As noted in my earlier response, the temporary reduction in public office hours is intended to provide staff with dedicated, uninterrupted time to complete assessments, work through client files, and manage other administrative tasks,” said Gutkowkska.
