This is the second in a series of stories looking at Pangnirtung Fisheries and how it's helping the community by providing jobs and developing the economy.
Jackie Maniapik oversees the youth employment program at Pangnirtung Fisheries in his role as production manager.
He said the goal is to start new employees young and eventually move them into a full-time role.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been receiving more applicants - the parents have been calling to see if their children can apply for a job here," said Maniapik. "At the moment, we have approximately eight, but we want to double or triple that by the end of the season.鈥�
He was encouraged by the management to apply for his position in the past year.
鈥淚 think we鈥檝e been a pretty good team,鈥� he says of his working and management style in the plant. 鈥淸General manager Jon Johannsson] showed me that there will be work and more improvement in the long run, so I鈥檓 looking more at the long-term results. It helped me realize that I can be here and try and make a difference in the community.
Since Maniapik started, he said there's been some improvement among staff morale and that's something he's trying to show by example.
"I try and treat everyone equally, the fishermen and the staff," he said. "That鈥檚 my main goal - I want to treat them the way I want to be treated.鈥�
Johannsson said the reason he chose Maniapik for the role came down to his leadership qualities.
鈥淗e thinks about others before himself (and) he鈥檚 community driven," he said.
Johannsson and executive manager Brittany MacLellan both said their long-term goals for plant management includes working themselves out of a job one day.
鈥淭rying to train up locals in management so they have exposure to more of the corporate side of things," said MacLellan. "The goal is to have everything be hand[ed] off to be managed locally. There鈥檚 individuals that are more than capable of doing it. They just need some guidance that they didn鈥檛 necessarily have in the past. I don鈥檛 think they鈥檝e had the opportunity before, for people to give them the trust, and the ability to dive in and do it.
MacLellan also said she's hoping to turn the operation in Pangnirtung into a pilot project for other communities.
"To come into Pangnirtung and learn from the fishers, learn from the processing staff, and learn from the management," she said. "They鈥檒l establish commercial fishing in other communities so you can have jobs, you can have employment and meaningful work."
鈥淭he government has been very helpful to us and there is a lot of money being spent,鈥� added Johannsson. 鈥淏ut the impact that they are creating here is so, so great.鈥�
That government support includes help from CanNor, the 快盈v3 Integrated Commercial Fisheries Initiative and the GN, said MacLellan.
Economic Development Minister David Akeeagok said the work being done at the fishery is having an big impact on the community.
鈥淲e need more of this in the territory," he said. "That鈥檚 a locally driven industry now. People from Pangnirtung have gone up to Grise Fiord and Pond Inlet, sharing the knowledge of what tools are available to try and catch turbot close to their communities.
鈥淚 think that鈥檚 one area that鈥檚 untapped and needs to be tapped," he added. "So we continue to support communities who want to do test fisheries.鈥�
Akeeagok also mentioned the upcoming partnerships with hunters and trappers organizations and fisheries in Greenland.
鈥淚 use Greenland as a model because fisheries are their main economic driver," he said. "And we鈥檙e right next door to each other. From my perspective, if we want to start an industry like fisheries, [Pangnirtung] is doing it on their own and I鈥檓 really, really proud of them.鈥�
鈥淚 want to be the last white man up here,鈥� Johannsson said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 my biggest goal - to leave things better than I found them. The fish up here is extremely good fish from the healthy Arctic waters. For us, it鈥檚 extremely important to protect the culture. There鈥檚 nothing we can鈥檛 do to protect and celebrate Inuit way of living down south. We could learn a lot from here.
