Back in 2009, a class action lawsuit had begun to fight for compensation from the Canadian Government, for damages and abuses suffered by all Indian Day School students.
On August 19th, 2019, the Federal Court approved the settlements to be paid to Indian Day School Survivors.
The settlement is divided up into two main parts, individual compensation, and the $200 Million Legacy Fund. The individual compensation is determined based on your experiences and abuse during your time in Indian Day School.
The Official Lawsuit Website states that, “Compensation ranges from $10,000 for harms associated with attending a Federal Indian Day School or Federal Day School to up to $200,000 for repeated abuse leading to long-term injury. Eligible Class Members will receive a payment reflecting the most severe harms they suffered while attending an Indian Day School, irrespective of the number of schools attended. “
This class action lawsuit has been approved for the following list of federal day schools.
Keep in mind, that by submitting your claim for this lawsuit, you give up any rights to sue in your own court case.
The next few sections cover some of the main parts of the Claim Form.
For more help completing your Claim Form, call the Gowling WLG Call Center at 1-844-539-3815.
This part of the Claim Form (Part 3) requires signatures from both the claimant (You) and a witness. This just verifies that you agree to the terms and conditions stated on that page of the form. Your witness must see you sign the document, then sign it themselves with the required information. Your witness does not have to view any other part of the Claim Form, they only need to see the Claimant and Witness Signatures page.
The settlement is organized and compensated based on the level of severity that the claimant (You) had experienced while attending a Federal Day School. Please be warned that this section may be difficult/triggering to complete for some. The first level (Level 1) is the minimum settlement amount that can be paid out, for the least amount of harm caused. The compensation increases based on the severity of harm the claimant (You) had endured.
In part 5 of your claim form, you will find a table that lays out the different levels of harm covered by the settlement. You must read through this part carefully, and ensure you choose the level which accurately depicts the most severe harm you have experienced at a Federal Day School.
For help with understanding this part of the claim form, you may reach out to the Gowling WLG Call Center at 1-844-539-3815 or contact a local representative.
On page 7 of your claim form, you will find the required supporting documents for each level of harm for your claim. Level 1 does not require any additional supporting documents. All levels of harm other than Level 1, must be accompanied by the supporting documents.
Your claim application lists a few required documents.
If for whatever reason you are missing one or more of the required documents, you can fill out the Sworn Declaration section with the help of a Guarantor.
The sworn declaration (Part 6 of the claim form), must be completed only if you are missing one or more of the required documents.
This part of the claim form is to be signed by both the claimant (You), and a guarantor. A guarantor can be any of the following people:
The guarantor must witness the claimant (You) sign the Sworn Declaration. It’s best if you both sign in the same room, at the same time.
Your guarantor does not have to view the rest of your Claim Form, they only need to view the Sworn Declaration page.
The second to last page of the Claim Form has 3 check boxes you can choose from. This will let them know how you would like your records and documents to be handled once your application has been processed. The 3 options are as follows:
This decision is very much up to you (the claimant).
The Settlement Agreement requires that payments will be made to each claimant by direct deposit or cheque. Please contact the Claims Administrator at 1 (888) 221-2898 for more details.
The Law Firm responsible for managing this lawsuit, has provided a call center to help anyone with filling out their claim form.
Gowling WLG Call Center: 1-844-539-3815.
Or, you may come down to the Gitsegukla Band Office, and we will assist you the best we can.
Gowling WLG offers free legal advice for claimants regarding their claims application. You may contact them with legal questions and inquiries regarding eligibility and harms experienced.
The Lawsuit Website states that information sessions will be held in communities across the country to answer questions and provide information on the lawsuits.
Helpful Links:
The start of the new year is always a busy time, with new-years resolutions and a new calendar full of opportunities, sometimes it’s hard to keep track of it all. This article is a compiled list of upcoming opportunities in the new year for training and getting certified for your future career.
This Harmonized Carpentry Apprentice Level 1 program is available through Coast Mountain College. Many people don’t know the feeling of being truly limitless. Carpentry is one of those industries where the sky is the only limit you have.. literally. Think about what it would feel like to build anything you can imagine. What would you build? A shed? A house? A career? Hurry! It starts on February 10th.
Take a look at this great opportunity.
The BladeRunners program is made to help you do just that. This training covers many required tickets for camp, construction, and environmental work. This is a great opportunity to get right into the workforce, by gaining the skills you need right out of the gate.
This welding program will get you up to speed with everything to do with welding. A career in welding can be a very rewarding career, especially if you pair it with other skills and industries. If you like working with your hands and not behind a desk, this may be for you. This particular course is intended for Women who would like to join the Welding industry, but there are always courses popping up depending on your location. We’ll keep you updated when more opportunities come up.
This Entrepreneurship program is offered in partnership by Tricorp, and the University of Victoria. Countless people across the world, from all sorts of cultures and backgrounds have found success in owning/running their own business. Though the world of business is not always for everyone, anyone can be an entrepreneur. Learn how to start, run, and grow your own business with the Kispiox Owned and Operated Program. This is a free 8-week course.
Start Date: February, 24th 2020
Open To: All Gitxsan members.
Contact: cymercer88@gmail.com
Resume writing can be daunting at times, but it doesn’t have to be. With a few tips and tricks, you’ll be off to the races (or the work site) in no time.
It can be easy to get caught up in templates, fonts, and colors, but when it comes to being professional, simple is better. If you choose to use a resume template (Google Docs has some good ones), then pick one with minimal graphics and a clean layout. Also, make sure to use a basic, easy-to-read font. No one likes trying to translate digital hieroglyphics.
“In 2015 i was working at this business working as a custodian and they had me cleaning and mopping floors and sometimes they asked me to help move the products in during stock delivery but mostly I was just doing maintenance and general up keep.”
The above sentence has a few issues. For starters, it’s one big run-on sentence. Which means they didn’t segment their ideas into easy-to-read chunks, making it rather difficult to process. You don’t have to be an author to write a resume, but when it comes to communicating your points and ideas, it’s best to be brief.
The second main issue, is that the writer kind of rambles by repeating statements they’ve already said.
With this in mind, let’s look at the below sentence and how it differs from the previous version:
“In 2015, I was employed by this business as a custodian. My duties included, cleaning, maintenance, and general up-keep. Heavy lifting was sometimes required.”
Your resume is your business card for you as a worker. Just like any other business card, you don’t always have to put everything on it.
There are a few key-parts that you should never leave out, but sometimes your resume can get bloated. Some key things to put on your resume are:
Would you hire someone who couldn’t be bothered to spell their name correctly? Probably not.
Though it’s not always a deal breaker, it’s best to make sure your resume is free of spelling errors and is easy to read. A little proofreading goes a long way.
A good rule, is to always get someone to look it over and check for errors for you. No matter how many times you read it yourself, it’s easy for a spelling mistakes to slip passed. Fresh eyes can see things that you sometimes can’t.
Applying for work can be stressful at times. The bills are building up, but the groceries are not. It’s okay, everyone goes through it at one point or another, it’s not the end of the world. You’re obviously on the right track, you’re writing a resume! So get it out there!
Though it’s not a great idea to send your resume to 20 different businesses on the same day… the shotgun approach does work well when needed. Find a few employers that stand out to you, and send it off to their preferred point of contact (in-person, email, fax, etc.). Then give it a few days. If you don’t get a call back, find a few more employers to try.
Your cover letter is a written letter to the person reviewing your resume. This is usually included along with your resume. This is an opportunity to tell the hiring employer, what you can bring to their organization. You might elaborate a little about your previous work experience, or maybe you can include a paragraph about why you’re passionate about your work, and what values you hold while working.
To view some cover letter examples, click here.
Fun fact! Giving up, is the leading cause of failure.
You see a job posting — it’s for a job you like. The benefits are great, the hours are doable, but the posting says “Must have squirrel handling ticket”. You don’t have a squirrel handling ticket… what do you do? YOU APPLY!
Yes.. there’s a good chance you won’t get a call back, because you don’t meet all the requirements. But think about it this way — you weren’t gonna get a call back if you didn’t apply either. And who knows, maybe you were the only applicant, and instead of being the new “Squirrel Handler”, you’re the new Squirrel Handler’s Assistant. It happens more often that you think. Apply anyway, and the worst thing that can happen is you don’t get a call back.
Growing up, we seem to think that people pick one career, then work-work-work until they die. This is far from the truth. The odds are, the job that you’re working right now, is not your first, and it’s most likely not going to be your last. In a world where anyone can be anything, there’s little reason to feel stuck. A lifetime is a long time to be doing something you don’t enjoy.
“Enjoy life. There’s plenty of time to be dead.”
― Hans Christian Andersen
The Pacific Association of First Nations Women (PAFNW) is excited to announce the 2020 Education Awards for Indigenous women attending Post-Secondary studies in BC. The PAFNW Awards Fund was established to encourage and support educational aspirations of Indigenous women and girls. These awards are open to women of First Nations, Metis and Inuit identity.
The Association has two awards to distribute this March to honour Indigenous women and their achievements in Post-Secondary education. They offer a $1,000 Bursary for Indigenous women in financial need, and one $1,000 Scholarship Award.
To learn more about this exciting opportunity, visit the PAFNW website.
Website Link:
https://pafnw.wordpress.com/2017/12/07/pafnw-scholarship-fund/
Happy Holidays!
Please see the attached letter from the Gitsegukla Band Council.
Happy holidays everyone!
Here you will find a copy of the Christmas Hamper Notice which contains important dates and information regarding our community services over the holidays.
Learn some essential life skills, steps for dealing with emotions in a healthy manor, and learn a bit more about what you feel and how to handle it. Transportation will be arranged for those who plan to attend.
When: December 10th, 11th, 12th
9:00am to 4:00pm
Kispiox Community Hall
Canyon Contracting is pleased to announce that our work in the village for 2019 is nearing completion. View official release below.
The following is a notice regarding the construction plans to build a new Headstart School building here in our community. Read more below…
This november, you will no longer be seeing the old Gitsegukla website we’ve come to know and love. We’ve been working hard to create a fast and convenient way to show off our community on the World Wide Web, while also making it easy for you, our community members, to access information from all of our departments.
The new Gitsegukla website will make it easier for us as an organization to publish announcements, job postings, meeting minutes, and updates regarding our community and operations.
Some of you may remember our community’s first website, created around 14 years ago. This was a milestone for Gitsegukla, when we established our footprint on the internet.
It may not have been the prettiest landing page ever created, but it represented our community to the rest of the world. This old website is long gone now, only accessible from the Web Archives which spends it’s time roaming from website to website, saving them to be remembered in the future.
In 2016, we released our new and updated website to the public, designed by the Meade Design Group, it set a new standard for Gitsegukla’s online presence. Mobile responsiveness packaged with an easy to use interface for users and administrators, introduced us to a new way of communicating.
Now, in 2019, we take a step further in design and convenience by releasing our newest point of contact for our community. We are happy to introduce you to our new website, and we hope that it will be a smooth/convenient way for our community members and visitors alike, to learn a little bit more about the small village along Highway 16, that we call home.
Here are some cool tips on the functionality of our website, and what you can do to help.
On the homepage of our website, you’ll notice two buttons locked to the bottom of your screen. These are used to toggle the events and news tabs, for quick viewing of upcoming events and recent posts from Gitsegukla Administration.
Depending on your internet connection and device, these tabs may take a few seconds before they’re fully loaded and clickable. Use these to catch up on updates in a hurry!
Though we may try our best, we can’t do it all on our own. Sometimes we need a little help from you, our users, so we’ve included a feedback form on our site, to allow you, the people, to submit feedback about how we do things here. This feedback form is intended for anything community related, that does not require a direct response. So if you have an opinion or observation you’d like to submit, please feel free to do so on our website.
We’ve been working on our new website for quite some time now, in hopes of ensuring every “i” is dotted, and every “T” is crossed. In web development however, sometimes things are missed. If you notice an issue with the usability of our website, we encourage you to let us know via the Feedback form so we can fix it ASAP.
Hey there, my name is Hunter. I’ve been the in-house Webmaster here in Gitsegukla since early 2016. When I first started, I only new a few things here and there about websites and how they worked. I started by making posts for the Band Office, uploading flyers and notices. As time went on, I started making adjustments to the existing website and incorporating new features. Eventually, I began building websites of my own, in my spare time. In 2019, we decided it would be beneficial for our community to have a new website to mark a new era; not only to represent where we are as a nation right now, but where we want to be. The future must be included as much as our past, when it comes to making progress. I’m proud to present this piece of work for our community, and I hope it does us well.
– The Internet Monkey, Hunter W. Frank
In July 2019, the Gitsegukla Men’s Group went on a fishing trip to Kincolith, BC. They were able to fund the trip by essentially combining two different programs into one.
The Gitsegukla Health Center has a program to supply elders in our community with traditional foods, especially for those who do not have the means to get it on their own.
The Men’s Group were able to bundle it together, so that the group members were able to go on this awesome adventure and learn new skills, while also supplying traditional foods for the elders. It was a great success, and I hear it was also a great experience. Well done guys!
Photos taken by members of the men’s group.
Back in 2009, a class action lawsuit had begun to fight for compensation from the Canadian Government, for damages and abuses suffered by all Indian Day School students. On August 19th, 2019, the Federal Court approved the settlements to be paid to Indian Day School Survivors. The settlement is divided up into two main parts, […..]
The start of the new year is always a busy time, with new-years resolutions and a new calendar full of opportunities, sometimes it’s hard to keep track of it all. This article is a compiled list of upcoming opportunities in the new year for training and getting certified for your future career. Carpentry Course Security […..]
The Pacific Association of First Nations Women (PAFNW) is excited to announce the 2020 Education Awards for Indigenous women attending Post-Secondary studies in BC. The PAFNW Awards Fund was established to encourage and support educational aspirations of Indigenous women and girls. These awards are open to women of First Nations, Metis and Inuit identity. The […..]
Happy Holidays! Please see the attached letter from the Gitsegukla Band Council.
Happy holidays everyone!Here you will find a copy of the Christmas Hamper Notice which contains important dates and information regarding our community services over the holidays.
Learn some essential life skills, steps for dealing with emotions in a healthy manor, and learn a bit more about what you feel and how to handle it. Transportation will be arranged for those who plan to attend. When: December 10th, 11th, 12th9:00am to 4:00pmKispiox Community Hall
Canyon Contracting is pleased to announce that our work in the village for 2019 is nearing completion.
The following is a notice regarding the construction plans to build a new Headstart School building here in our community. Read more below…
This november, you will no longer be seeing the old Gitsegukla website we’ve come to know and love. We’ve been working hard to create a fast and convenient way to show off our community on the World Wide Web, while also making it easy for you, our community members, to access information from all of […..]
In July 2019, the Gitsegukla Men’s Group went on a fishing trip to Kincolith, BC. They were able to fund the trip by essentially combining two different programs into one. The Gitsegukla Health Center has a program to supply elders in our community with traditional foods, especially for those who do not have the means […..]
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