No more falling back for the Northwest Territories

The GNWT has sent out an advisory for businesses to review products and services to determine impacts of the ending of seasonal time changes and moving to a year-round time.

The Office of the Chief Information Officer stated that effective November 1st, the NWT will move to a permanent UTC-6 time standard.

The new time zone will be known as Northwest Territories Time.

“We ask that you review your products and services for any impacts related to this change, including time zone settings, scheduling functions, integrations, and automated processes,” stated the notice,” stated the notice.

The official Northwest Territories time zone is expected to be published by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority this month.

Following publication, businesses may need to incorporate and distribute updates to support the new time zone.

The GNWT also wants to be informed, “if any of your remediation efforts impact current GNWT services or systems.”

In April, much to the expected delight of those MLAs who have been on this issue for years on behalf of constituents, NWT Premier R.J. Simpson followed the Government of Alberta ’s lead to scrap the twice-yearly time change.

“This practical, forward-looking decision reflects what many people across the Canada have been calling for. Northerners in particular have been clear on this issue: through public engagement, a majority of NWT residents expressed support for ending seasonal time change and moving to a year-round time,” stated Simpson at the time.

“This shift to year-round time will require careful coordination across jurisdictions, with industry, and with the technology systems we rely on. Taking this step alongside Alberta allows us to do that work more efficiently and with fewer disruptions.”