Joe Kunuk is Nunavut’s new DM of human resources

SEAN MCKIBBON
Nunatsiaq News

IQALUIT — The Nunavut government’s Human Resources minister, Kelvin Ng, has a new right hand man in the human resources department.

Ng announced Thursday that Joe Kunuk will leave his job as principal secretary to Premier Paul Okalik and accept a position as deputy minister of Human Resources.

That job has been vacant since last spring, when Kunuk’s predecessor, Marius Tungilik, resigned the position to move to Rankin Inlet.

“Mr. Kunuk’s experience and ability are tremendous assets to the department,” Ng said. “We’re looking forward to having him as part of the team.”

“I’m delighted to have the opportunity to assist in building the human resources capacity of the Nunavut government,” Kunuk said. Part of that building process will be decentralization.

“There are ongoing issues around balancing staffing needs with housing and office space,” said Kunuk.

One of the first tasks that Kunuk will have to tackle as deputy minister will be the upcoming rounds of collective bargaining with the territory’s teachers and public service unions.

It’s a job he says his 14 years of experience in government have prepared him for.

Kunuk has worked in the past as a regional superintendent of personnel for the GNWT, and deputy minister for the department of the executive with the Office of the Interim Commissioner.

Kunuk will start his new job August 16.