The Provincial Auditor’s report tabled in the legislature today (Tues) includes recommendations for the SLGA when it comes to craft alcohol regulations and follow-up, sticking to the time frame for the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board on psychological injury claims decisions, and improving graduation rates for online learners with Sun West School Division’s Distance Learning Centre, among other topics.

Tara Clemett says the SLGA needs to increase its regulatory oversight of craft alcohol producers, treating them consistently and fairly while ensuring it receives periodic lab test reports. One of the recommendations from the Provincial Auditor, is to follow up with producers who are late in submitting their required lab test reports. Clemett explains that permits are renewed every three years and lab test certificates are needed every two years. The SLGA’s quality assurance policy requires the lab test reports, but doesn’t follow up with producers who are late.

The Authority maintains a listing of craft alcohol producers and due dates for their updated lab reports, but the Auditor found over half of the product approved for sale required updated certificates, and some were more than nine months past deadline. Clemett also recommends the SLGA make sure the permits are renewed prior to expiry. She notes that four craft alcohol producers were operating without a valid permit during the audit.

The Auditor’s report says the SLGA completed ten inspects and 24 pre-permit inspections in 12 months, compared to 64 craft alcohol producers in total, and had not inspected one producer in the past three years.

The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board is taking longer than expected to make psychological injury claims decisions. The report says the WCB needs to meet its target time frames for assessing psychological injury claims and improve its communication with claimants, and establish formal guidance to reduce delays in administering these claims. Provincial Auditor, Tara Clemett, says psychological injuries are often complex, and as a claim, generally more difficult to administer and require more judgement than some other injuries.

The WCB accepted 40 per cent of more than 500 psychological injury claims last year, but the audit found 17 out of 30 claims tested by the Provincial Auditor’s office did not meet the target timeframe for assessing and communicating decision outcomes, which would be within 14 business days. The late claim decisions took between 15 and 43 business days to communicate, which can create delays for injured workers in receiving benefits and treatments.

Psychological injuries are rising in Saskatchewan, and the report says the highest number are among first responders, corrections and healthcare workers.

The Provincial Auditor’s first report for 2022 includes recommendations for Sun West School Division and its Distance Learning Centre to establish completion rate targets and improve the engagement processes for students learning solely online. Sun West is in West Central Saskatchewan and includes the communities of Kindersley, Rosetown and Biggar. Provincial Auditor, Tara Clemett, says Sun West has not set course completion targets for its students who are solely online.

Its average distance-education course completion rate for the 2020-21 school year was 61 per cent, including those who take some online courses to supplement their in-person classes. Some of Clemett’s recommendations include identifying teachers who are critically behind in grading, engaging students who are behind to help them to complete their courses, and implement a course development policy that includes how often to review courses and updates. Clemett says Sun West last updated its approximately 19 Grades 10 to 12 courses between four and 14 years ago.

Across Saskatchewan, between 2017 and 19, there were 13,000 Grades 10 to 12 students on average registered in distance education courses, which doubled in 2021. Sun West has the highest proportion of high school distance education registrations compared to other individual distance education schools in Saskatchewan. More than 2,100 students registered at the Distance Learning Centre take an average of three courses per year.

(CJWW)