The La Grande Agreement guaranteed 150 permanent jobs with Hydro-Quebec by 1996. Today’s reality falls far short of these numbers. It was expected that about 300 Crees would undergo training and 150 would be hired. Today the LG3 training facility is empty and has been shut down. Only 80 Crees were trained and 35 of them left before finishing. In 1996, Hydro-Quebec has 12 Crees who are considered fulltime; 10 temporary workers and 32 who are on recall if jobs become available.
Jimmy Neacappo, a member of a committee composed of the James Bay Eeyou Corp., Cree School Board and Hydro-Quebec, is looking at these and other problems. He says the numbers speak for themselves.
“We need those jobs, but getting Hydro Quebec to fulfill their obligations is another story,” Neacappo said.
Hydro Quebec, however, is exhilarated about the future. Hydro-Quebec spokesperson Steve Flanagan said he is optimistic Crees and Hydro will have a new Agreement on employment in the near future.
“At the moment we have no Agreement but everything is going well,” said Flanagan. “You can expect something in a few months.” He told The Nation all questions should be referred to Jimmy Neacappo.
Neacappo was surprised that HQ felt this way. “All they’ve done is suggest an amendment that basically tries to shift part of their obligations onto the Crees.” he said.
Neacappo admitted there were Cree problems meeting some of the standards Hydro-Quebec had. To work for the utility, you have to speak French and have Secondary V, even to undergo training. The jobs selected as good for the Cree population were limited in number also. Leaving your family and community for the training period also proved hard for Crees seeking employment, Neacappo said.
He went on to point out that these problems don’t exist for the newest generation of Crees, who are proficient in French and have Secondary V, but said thatwith no HQ training facilities, there’s nowhere for them to train.
Some Crees have suggested that if Hydro Quebec can’t provde the jobs they promised, they should at least give Crees the money to create employment ourselves.
Neacappo says the current Hydro-Quebec proposal doesn’t have concrete solutions, even though the original Agreement is quite clear that they are responsible.
“We have to find a practical solution to the problems. In the case of the Crees, I think we need to regroup and discuss a strategy with the knowledge that the full obligation falls on Hydro-Quebec, not the Crees,” he said.
