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RANKIN INLET/CORAL HARBOUR - More communities need to participate in courses offered by the Municipal Training Organization (MTO), says its president.

Paul Waye, who is also the senior administrative officer (SAO) for Rankin Inlet, said MTO courses offer good value to communities.

Charlene Tasseor of Rankin Inlet, back row far left, recently completed an accounting cycle 1 MTO training course in Rankin with fellow students pictured here. They are, back row to her left, Stacey Paniyuk and Louisa Kudluk of Coral Harbour, Clare O'Connell Noon (instructor) and Debbie Greer of Rankin, and front row from left, Kidlapik Paniloo of Resolute Bay, Alice Takatak of Sanikiluaq and Todd Koonark of Pond Inlet. - photo courtesy of Clare O'Connell Noon

He said the biggest hurdle MTO faces is Nunavut communities not buying into its programs.

"The main contributor to our problem of communities not buying into our training programs is SAO turnover in Nunavut," said Waye.

"You get SAOs fairly new to the job and they don't want to let staff workers go for a week or two of training.

"I've put quite a few people through these training programs and I've seen definite increases in their capacity and skill levels.

"Because training is targeted directly towards the occupations these people are in, there's a direct and immediate impact on their ability to do their jobs."

Waye said the MTO is still plugging away in its efforts to increase program awareness and their value to communities.

He said workers who finish a course, and are then able to complete their tasks faster upon their return, put participating hamlets way ahead of the game in a short period of time.

"The whole mentality of not being able to afford to have a staff member out of the office for a short period of time, and the SAO turnover are the main reasons behind our problems with communities not buying into our programs.

"There's no doubt there's high costs associated with our training, but where we're located, there's just no getting away from that.

"We try to deliver the one-week core programs in each community and that's worked out to a certain degree.

"But we're always going to be faced with the cost of bringing people in from other communities as well as an instructor in many cases."

Coral Harbour's Rob Hedley is one SAO who firmly supports MTO training.

Hedley recently sent two staff members for MTO training in Rankin and is sending them back for additional courses shortly.

He said he sees a big improvement in staff skill levels when they return from training courses.

"I wouldn't send them if the training wasn't effective," said Hedley.

"I can understand new SAOs who are still feeling their way along wanting to keep their staff in the office, but the gains far outweigh the sacrifices.

"You have a duty to your staff to allow them to train and better themselves professionally, so in that respect, it's in everyone's best interest for SAOs to buy into the training programs."

Hedley said when staff members come back with improved abilities, he can teach them more and they can handle more responsibility.

He said that will eventually lead to cross-training and everyone in the office being able to do each other's jobs.

"When you reach that point, illness, vacancies and things of that nature aren't as devastating to a hamlet.

"The more skilled a hamlet's staff members are, the better it is for everyone in the community they serve."

MTO training moves in a three-year cycle, during which time the five core programs should be offered in each community.

The core programs are an introduction to Northern government, human resource management, communications, an introduction to computers and municipal finances.

There are also targeted courses such as accounting 1 and 2 for the finance officer stream.

Targeted courses are given regionally or territorially, depending on demand.

Waye said the bulk of MTO funding is provided by Community and Government Services (CGS).

"The MTO board consists of two SAOs and two CGS representatives, and the main topic we're discussing is how to revitalize participation in our courses," said Waye.

"CGS is like MTO's partner in delivering the programs, and it's very supportive in spreading the word on the value of these training programs."

Waye said MTO programs are not restrictive when offered in a community.

He said hamlet staff are the first to have access, but Nunavut government staff are also allowed to participate if they need the training.

"Even people on many forms of income support are allowed and, in fact, will receive a training allowance for participating.

"So for anyone out there who wants to start working in municipal government, these courses are a great way to get training to get a foot in the door when they're offered in their community.

"Even workers from the private sector are welcome if a particular class isn't full, because training and education should never go to waste."