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Temporary workers from overseas should not be filling low-skilled, low-paid jobs.

In the wake of sweeping, nationwide allegations on the abuse of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, the federal government suspended the program for restaurants this spring. It recently released a revised program that dictates accommodation, food service or retail businesses in regions with a high unemployment rate - such as the NWT - can no longer apply.

Yellowknifer applauds this move. As Northern Territories Federation of Labour president Mary Lou Cherwaty said in April, having workers essentially indentured to their employers for fear of "being shipped home" creates ripe conditions for human rights abuses.

Last week, the owner of Sushi Cafe bemoaned the federal government's changes, saying he won't be able to afford to hire workers if the program is cancelled.

Northerners do not want to work at a restaurant where wages start at $11 or $12 an hour, said Raymond Li of Sushi Cafe, adding temporary foreign workers are provided with subsidized room and board on top of their wages.

However, the federal government's overhaul of the program was prompted after allegations emerged that an owner of two Tim Hortons franchises in B.C. was clawing back wages from his temporary workers to cover their living subsidies. There is no proof temporary workers in Yellowknife have been treated unjustly, but this is just one example of potential abuses employees face who are fully dependent on their employer to stay in Canada.

Prior to the overhaul, the system seemed grossly unfair to unemployed Canadians, as it allowed employers to pay staff lower wages and - more importantly - to foreign workers who faced, at best, long hours completing menial tasks for little pay.

Perhaps it is true that NWT residents would rather be unemployed than work for less than $15 an hour, especially since the median wage in the territory is $32.53 per hour, or $67,662 annually. Meanwhile, the average industrial wage in the NWT is $28 an hour.

However, if employers are paying decent wages, they should be able to find Canadians to fill the positions.

The federal overhaul is an attempt to return to the original purpose of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which is to find staff when no Canadians can be found to fill jobs.

This should not include flipping burgers.

If restaurateurs cannot staff fast-food outlets with the wages they currently offer, maybe it's time to increase them and the prices on their menus.

The recent hubbub over Yellowknife rapper Aaron "Godson" Hernandez's latest music video proves there is no such thing as bad press.

It also shows that while Yellowknife is no easy place to start a music career, it's still small enough that people tend to pull together to help out in times of need.

And with the help of some friends, Hernandez didn't just weather the storm, he prospered.

Joined by Ice Pilots NWT-star Mikey McBryan, Yellowknifer-turned Hollywood actor Dustin Milligan, Wiseguy chef and Top Chef Canada contender Robin Wasicuna in the reshoot, Hernandez himself said the new version of his video Friday Night promises to be an improvement over the music video the territorial government asked him to take down.

"This video will be even more EPIC," Hernandez recently wrote on his Facebook page.

Aside from the celebrity attention, Hernandez may have also made some lesser-known friends who helped pay for the reshoot. They have collectively donated $1,355 of the $4,000 he's asking for on his IndieGoGo crowd-sourcing campaign.

It just goes to show that simply because things don't work out the way you would hope, they can still work out better than you would expect.

The new video is expected to come out July 7. Hopefully, it will continue to contribute to Hernandez's continued success.

Forest fires are a natural phenomenon that the Deh Cho has been getting a lot of exposure to recently.

Last year, the region had 72 fires, not including the area around Fort Providence and Kakisa which are included in the South Slave by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. That was considerably more than 50, which is about the average number the region is subject to in a year.

The fires drew a lot of attention because they weren't just in remote locations. Last year, forest fires threatened Sambaa K'e Falls Territorial Park and briefly closed Highway 1.

Fires also burned the ferry camp at N'Dulee crossing and led to Jean Marie River being put on an evacuation alert in early July and Wrigley being given a voluntary evacuation order a week later.

This year, it is Kakisa's turn. At just seven kilometres, a large forest fire is uncomfortably close to the small community. Residents chose to leave on June 27 given the risk from the fire itself, smoke and having the access road cut off by the blaze.

Luckily, no Deh Cho communities in recent history have been overrun by forest fires. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) is taking significant steps to help ensure that Kakisa won't have the unwelcome honour of being the first.

Forest fires, as many people know, are a natural part of the cycle of forests. They help replenish forests, create new growth and produce morel mushrooms as a short-term added bonus. When fires aren't threatening people or infrastructure, ENR's general policy is to monitor them as they burn.

Forest fires are also the risk that Deh Cho residents accept in return for living in a beautiful, forested area. Residents can, however, take steps to minimize the risks.

It is everyone's responsibility to follow fire bans and use extreme caution when lighting fires in the hot and dry conditions that currently exist across the region. The majority of the fires in the Deh Cho are caused by lightning strikes, but one uncontrolled fire near a community could spell disaster.

Acknowledging that they live in a forested area, Deh Cho residents can also obtain information from ENR on the FireSmart program. The program shows residents steps they can take to reduce the risk of forest fires to their property and home.

Forest fires are nothing new in the Deh Cho and will certainly continue to occur every year. Kakisa, Jean Marie River and Wrigley can all attest to the fact that the fires can threaten any community.

It is up to residents to take precautionary steps and ensure they are not the cause of any additional fires.

For the next month or so, Inuvik is really going to be "the place of man."

The surge of activity began with the Aboriginal Day activities and the Inuvik Petroleum Show, and will continue into the Women's Softball Territorial Championships, the Great Northern Arts Festival, Parks Day, Oceans Day, the Inuvik Adventure Race, the Inuit Circumpolar Council meetings and the Northern Games, concluding with the End of the Road Music Festival and other assorted activities. It will be late August before residents will have a chance to catch their breath.

That means July is going to be insanely busy, particularly in the height of the summer vacation season.

It's good to see the town humming with activity any time of the year, but summer, and especially the Midnight Sun, brings new possibilities for enjoyment – if you can ignore our healthy crop of insects, that is. However, that's another story.

It appears most people are eagerly looking forward to the Inuit Circumpolar Council conference and Northern games in particular. That's understandable, since it's been 1992 since the council visited here, along with the games. That might not quite make it a once-in-a-lifetime event, although for some people it will be, if they are new to Inuvik life.

I'm encouraging everyone who can spare the time to get out and enjoy this rare stretch of event overload.

Inuvik is generally a pretty busy place as it is, so Inuvikmiut should be in good shape to partake in as much as they possibly can.

Everyone's going to have their favourites, and doubtless the actual meetings of the Inuit Circumpolar Council may not top everyone's list. Few people enjoy meetings, but this is a case where they should make an exception.

All the activity is even prompting discussion that some protests might come to town. If that is indeed the case, that's fine too, so long as it's kept within the bounds of civility.

So we say, bring this burst of activity on. We can handle it ... and we're going to enjoy every moment.

Before the city moves ahead with its bid to host the Canada Winter Games, it needs to be sure visions of glory don't cloud its financial judgement. More importantly, council must ensure the public is onside.

City councillor Bob Brooks rightly points out that the 2023 Games will require the public's support through a referendum vote if the city is to borrow any money for them. With an estimated $56.8-million price tag - $20 million of which will come from city coffers - the prospect of borrowing seems likely.

The last referendum held by the city - asking voters permission in 2010 to borrow up to $49 million to build a district energy system - went badly. That's because instead of asking tough questions about the feasibility of such a system, all of city council save for one acted liked a bunch of pom-pom waving cheerleaders.

This greatly damaged their credibility when the city proved unable to answer basic questions, such as: how warm was the water it intended to draw from beneath Con Mine to supply the geothermal portion of the project?

The Canada Winter Games will likely be an easier sell than district energy was. People naturally want to be part of something exciting and glamorous, even if it costs a little extra. It will also mean a new aquatics centre if the city decides to host the Games.

But with a proposal to start setting aside money for the Games beginning next year, so far little has been said around the council table about whether the city should even proceed.

Brooks said the Games look expensive right now but a cost analysis has yet to be done, which will ultimately determine if the city can pull it off.

While the city touts facility upgrades, increased tourism and the financial benefits, there are many questions that remain unanswered as the city moves ahead. These numbers are preliminary and don't include other expenses, such as what it will cost to build the athlete's village.

The best thing council can do is get ahead of the Games, start asking questions and make sure people have the answers so that if and when a borrowing referendum comes, residents know what the consequences are.

If approved, the enormous cost figure required for the Games will cause adjustments to be made, whether they come in the form of tax increases, fee hikes, service cuts or added debt.

To ride the coattails of a receptive city administration without council challenging how these costs will affect Yellowknifers will be a recipe for opposition from the public.

Hello hello, Kivalliq. I'm Candace Thomson, and I'll be here in Rankin Inlet covering for Darrell Greer's vacation, slaving away at the news desk while he zips around the coast of Cape Breton, N.S., enjoying the sun. I figured I'd take the time to introduce myself before delving into this, my first editorial for you all.

This week I had the pleasure of speaking with two young people who had gone through the Royal

Canadian Army Cadet program. Desiree Autut and Lewis Sammurtok both started when they were in their early teens, and as I listened to them talking about all of the things they got to do with the cadets - going on summer trips, drill competitions, the weekly struggle of keeping one's uniform perfect - it made me think back to my own time in cadets.

I was an air cadet in the 783 Shelburne squadron in Shelburne, N.S., for a few years. I joined because my grandfather had been a doctor in the Air Force and I wanted to feel closer to him. That, and it made my grandmother happy to see me in the uniform. Speaking of uniforms, I think my least favourite part was going through the process of ironing pants and shirts, trying not to get burn marks on the thin material, and of course polishing boots. I would groan at the thought of it every Monday morning, knowing I'd have to come home from school and take care of it before I went.

After all the whining was done, however, I always felt proud about how my uniform looked. There were little traditions in our squadron like a prize for whoever had the shiniest boots, and of course kissing the brass (a brooch with the Air Cadet insignia we pinned to our wedges, or hats) whenever you accidentally dropped it. I was especially nervous about my uniform on the nights we had drill practice, something that terrified me for at least the entire first year.

Amidst all of the rules and the challenges that came with cadets, which really served to make you a more responsible young person, the experiences of joining together and competing as a team against other squadrons, going on trips to the various bases in Nova Scotia, among other things, were what really left you with memories. Lewis said he encourages others to join because you make the best memories you ever will make in your life, and he's not lying.

And that's why cadets is such an important program. It not only teaches kids to be responsible and gives them something to do, it lets them bond with others and travel, seeing different parts of Canada and meeting other cadets all over the country. It gives them a sense of pride to be a part of something, especially when their hard work is honoured with a promotion. For all of those kids who are bored, or feel a little lost, the cadet program can give them a sense of purpose and motivate them to do something with their lives.

With all of that said, I was told by Dorothy Tootoo, the commanding officer with the Army cadet corps here in Rankin, that they are in need of Cadet Instructors Cadre (CICs). If you're interested in helping out the local corps which provides so much for youth, give Dorothy a call. You don't need military or cadet experience to join up.

The squadron I was a member of back east is now in danger of being shut down permanently because of a lack of new cadets. I hope youth such as Autut and Sammurtok continue to inspire teens here in the Kivalliq to join, because it truly is a great experience.

Traditional skills are valuable. It's a mantra that Northern communities have been chanting for years and one that governments have tried to support in various ways.

However, the Tlicho Government's new Wilderness Training Safety Program might be the best idea in recent years to help create job opportunities from skills that have been past down for generations.

In a society that values pieces of paper legitimizing our skills, many people, especially elders who can be considered experts in the field of on-the-land knowledge, were losing out on opportunities they were most qualified for.

Many organizations require national certifications to hire people. The Tlicho's wilderness training initiative allowed participants to earn certificates in everything from firearm safety to ice rescues. Skills many of them had, but could not prove via recognized credentials.

Now, with those pieces of paper in hand, they can monetize those skills in the workforce.

The program also took it to the next level by offering supervisory training and financial literacy training, providing an opportunity to start a business.

It is ideas such as these that will help diversify the NWT's economy and provide more opportunities for Northerners to join the workforce or become employers themselves.

Congratulations to the graduates of the program and kudos to the Tlicho Government for bringing the opportunity forward. Hopefully similar training and more creative ideas are forthcoming to help get Northerners working that do not rely explicitly on resource development.

The Dene Nation celebrated 115 years of Treaty 8 during its annual assembly from June 16 to 20. They used the milestone and the gathering to remind people of the importance of the treaties and the commitments the Canadian government made to First Nations people more than a century ago.

Delegates and leaders emphasized the role First Nations should play in the economic and resource development on their traditional lands and criticized governments for moving ahead on projects without proper approvals from bands and aboriginal governments in the area - a right that was enshrined in the spirit of the treaties when they were agreed upon.

Crushing the Canadian economy, nor blocking all development, is the agenda of the Dene people. They only want their rights to be observed and respected, rights that were enshrined in law more than 100 years ago.

Respect those rights and industry and government will likely find less opposition and more co-operation at the table when meeting with the Dene people, assuming concessions are made to ensure First Nation voices are heard and incorporated into development plans.

After all they have been through - giving testimony, reliving horrific times from the past, enduring a legal process, listening to apologies and receiving compensation -- promises made in good faith must be honoured for residential school survivors, including up to 3,000 Nunavummiut, as the compensation process wraps up.

The Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement spells out that the memories of survivors recalled at public hearings, written down in court documents or told to workers within the system would be kept confidential.

At a recent access and privacy conference, chief adjudicator Dan Shapiro outlined the position he plans on presenting to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in July when the court hears legal arguments on what to do with Independent Assessment Process records in 2016. That is when the process of compensation to thousands of victims is expected to be complete.

It has been a long and arduous process made even more difficult with evidence that lawyers and law firms bilked some victims out of a portion of their settlement money by charging exorbitantly to fill out forms and complete paper work. Some even counselled victims to exaggerate claims so they could receive higher compensation.

It is time for some honesty, which means that promises of confidentiality must be kept. Shapiro said he plans to argue that the only way complete confidentiality of participants can be respected and their dignity preserved is through the destruction of all records.

The records, in many cases, are very personal. The details of what happened to young people, taken away from the families and communities and forced to attend federal residential schools is heart-wrenching. Students suffered sexual, physical or emotional abuse and were left with unimaginable pain that has impacted them for their entire lives. They deserve the ability to put the Independent Assessment Process - another system foisted upon them, although with good intentions - behind them. The documents containing the names and testimony are no longer needed once the process is complete.

What happened cannot be swept under the rug, either. History forgotten repeats itself and it is vital that future generations be told about the mistakes of the past, the cruel and unusual treatment done to rightful citizens of Canada, children no less.

That dark topic is being chronicled in history books and textbooks, made a mandatory part of the social studies curriculum in schools across Canada. For future generations to understand, testimony and details of the abuse must be documented, without naming names, and with a degree of respect and sense of dignity.

Give the remaining survivors the ability to heal but don't allow others to forget.

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