(Ottawa) Air Canada has been the subject of three times more complaints under the Official Languages Act than in a typical year, reveals the latest report from Canada’s Commissioner of Official Languages, Raymond Théberge.
“It’s frustrating,” Mr. Théberge said Tuesday at a press conference in Ottawa. I would venture to believe that since 1988 Air Canada was privatized that they would be better able to meet their obligations. »
The 276 admissible complaints against Air Canada represent a ten-year high, with the exception of those received the year the airline’s big boss, Michael Rousseau, gave a speech in English in Quebec in addition to s boasted of having lived for more than a decade in Montreal without speaking a word of French.
From the preface to his 2022-2023 report, the Commissioner states that “much remains to be done” to materialize the project of a country where both Francophones and Anglophones can plan their visit to an airport, travel by plane, take the train or cross the border in their language.
Mr. Théberge, however, was pleased that Bill C-13, which modernizes the Official Languages Act, gives him new powers if passed, including making orders and imposing fines. C-13 has received the support of all members of the Commons and is being studied by the Senate.
“Currently, the only tools we have at our disposal is to make recommendations, and we rely on the goodwill of federal institutions to implement these recommendations. So these new powers are much more binding,” he said.
Asked if the fines – of up to $25,000 – have the potential to shake the columns of Air Canada’s temple, Mr. Théberge was “realistic”.
“I don’t think a $25,000 fine is going to make people shake,” he admitted. What is interesting is that in what is proposed the Governor in Council can always review the amounts. This is also for each complaint. »
His office intends to publicize the fines and believes that this could have a much more deterrent impact than the fines themselves.
In the meantime, Mr. Théberge recommends that the President of the Conseil du trésor and the Minister of Transport develop tools and guidelines concerning the language obligations of airport authorities.
He also suggests that the Minister of Transport require airport authorities to submit a plan on how they will meet their linguistic obligations to the public.
