My questions are to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry, for fair compensation for ministry employees.

Speaker, summer is just around the corner, and across the province, people are getting geared up to head outdoors. Most people in northern Ontario head out onto treaty land to enjoy the beautiful natural resources that we are so lucky to have. To ensure that everyone can access these lands safely and responsibly, we rely on the hard work of conservation officers.

Despite the demands placed on conservation officers to carry out duties ranging from inspections, investigations and enforcement, they are being grossly underpaid when compared with other provincial employees doing similar work.

In 2022, conservation officers came to Queen’s Park demanding a wage that reflects their work. The minister said that he would support their efforts and ensure they are treated fairly.

My question: Will the minister commit to resolving the classification issue the conservation officers raised in October and pay them a wage that reflects their duties?

This isn’t just happening with conservation officers. Last fall, I wrote to the Minister of Natural Resources about staffing issues in the aviation, forest fire and emergency services after receiving complaints about the high turnover rate among wildland firefighters in Chapleau due to low wages. The minister assured me in his response that the MNRF was exploring recruitment and retention strategies to overcome these staffing shortages. Last week, I was informed by Chapleau Cree Chief Corston that Chapleau will only have four operating crews this season, down from 10 last season.

Speaker, with forest fire season starting earlier and lasting longer, communities in the north are put at risk if we are not ready to respond quickly and effectively.

Will the minister immediately raise wages for wildland firefighters and maintain adequate staffing levels in the AFFES across northern Ontario?

Thank you very much for the presentation from the member from Hamilton West, Dundas and Ancaster—not necessarily in that order.

You spoke about motherhood wage penalty, the gap between women’s wages and the average man’s wage doing equivalent work. I wonder if you could talk about a disability penalty. When I think of the social assistance rates that are available for people with disabilities and really how all of that money is always spent locally, and yet it’s not nearly enough for people to live on—if you would address that, I’d appreciate it.