The Public Service Alliance of Canada wants to protect its turf in the Yukon and two First Nations want more leverage when negotiating with the territorial government.

Those are the driving forces behind a memorandum of understanding (MOU) inked before local media this morning by John Gordon, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) president , Yukon Employees Union (YEU) boss Laurie Butterworth, Tr'ondek Hwech'in Chief Eddie Taylor and Simon Mervyn, chief of the First Nation of Na-cho Nyak Dun.

"To date, the government has been using the union as an impediment for First Nations to obtain service and maintenance contracts,” Taylor said.

"And this (MOU) proves they're not an impediment and they're willing to ... obtain positive results for the First Nations.”

Taylor said he isn't prepared to see jobs within the Tr'ondek Hwech'in's own bureaucracy unionized. He sees no problem, however, with Tr'ondek Hwech'in beneficiaries unionized at a future mine site, or as future employees of the First Nation whose jobs were previously with the Yukon government.

"(PSAC) can offer us help and strength in obtaining employment within the mines, and I actually see that as a positive,” Taylor said when asked what a union could provide that access and benefit agreements between the Tr'ondek Hwech'in and industry could not.

But what would be a lucrative contract to maintain the Dempster Highway inside the Yukon's boundaries was the primary focus of the morning's press conference.

Not mentioned, however, is the fact the Yukon government currently maintains that highway – a nearly $7-million expenditure in 2008 – rather than contracting the work.

"The shared maintenance for the Dempster Highway, it's clear in the (Umbrella Final) agreement that we should have privy to with regards to implementing Chapter 22,” said Mervyn, adding that after making no headway, the union seemed a viable option.

"We've tried every means possible to utilize the agreements .... Every First Nation has tried it and it went nowhere, so we're taking it to another process.”

Taylor said other Yukon First Nations are aware of the MOU and "watching what's happening carefully.”

Chapter 22 of the Umbrella Final Agreement – and also contained within each settled First Nation's final agreement – provides for economic opportunities within the Yukon economy.

Maximizing training opportunities for First Nations and informing First Nations of government tenders are among Chapter 22's provisions, but there is nothing obligating government to provide preferential treatment or sole-sourced contracts.

"(Contracting Dempster Highway maintenance) has been discussed, but ... I don't know to what level that's been discussed,” said Jennifer Magnuson, a spokeswoman for the Department of Highways and Public Works.

Elaine Taylor, the Yukon's minister responsible for the Public Service Commission – charged with negotiating collective agreements between the government and unions – declined to be interviewed for this story.

Taylor forwarded all queries to Liz McKee, a spokeswoman for the commission who only learned about the MOU this morning.

While McKee was unable to comment on specifics of the MOU, she said it was the first she heard that collective agreements were being used as a rationale for not devolving certain service provisions from the Yukon government to First Nations.

From Butterworth's perspective, working with the First Nations on devolution matters comes with a twofold benefit for the YEU.

"It keeps our collective agreements in place, which is always what we like to do when government tries to sell stuff off, we like to take our collective agreements and keep our membership, at least in that job or another job within government,” said Butterworth

"In the past, that's always what's worried us ‘what happens to our collective agreement when...?'”