Mr. Chairman, members, allow me first to thank the committee for inviting us to appear before you today.
Our union firmly supports the principles and objectives of the Official Languages Act. Respect for and the promotion of the official languages regime in Canada are essential in ensuring that all Canadians have access to federal government services in the language of their choice. They are also essential so that workers in the designated bilingual regions can work in the language of their choice.
Unfortunately, some policies implemented by the federal government in recent years betray a lack of will to help workers acquire, practise and maintain language skills in either official language. In this area, the cancellation of funding for the Court Challenges Program, which played a vital role in the defence and promotion of minorities' official language rights across Canada, indicates to us that the government is not serious about its legal and constitutional obligations respecting language rights. We can only add our voice to those of the many organizations that have called for funding to be reinstated for this important federal program.
In this presentation, we would like to address three questions: the central role of training, staffing and the importance of consulting bargaining agents, and the leadership that is required to transform the language culture in the workplace within the federal public service.
In a society where the vast majority of the population does not have a solid knowledge of both official languages, the onus is on the federal government to shoulder its responsibility for ensuring adequate language training for those individuals who are called upon to work in the federal public service.
As the employer, the federal government has a duty to set the example with regard to bilingualism in the workplace. And yet, the offer of training programs and related budgets have been decentralized, thus weakening the government's ability to develop a coherent approach to language training. Each department must now decide on its own priorities, including in the area of language training. The result is an uneven approach, devoid of long-term planning, which is at times arbitrary.
In addition, the training itself is no longer provided by the federal government, but has been contracted out, the result of uneven approaches poorly suited to workplace requirements.
In a study conducted by the federal government in 2002, we know that 17% of Anglophone employees reported that, for lack of language training, they were unable to advance as far in their careers as they had expected. Francophone employees have the same problem, but it's accentuated. Only 5% of language training is given to Francophone employees. Furthermore, managers can generally take advantage of language training programs. On the other hand, lower-level workers, more often than not members of the equity groups, do not have the same opportunities. Many of those employees are members of our union.
Guidelines must be set on access to language training so that training is not unfairly denied. Workers in the federal public sector who are denied adequate training should have an appeal process available to them. Language training should also be offered so that language skills, once acquired, are maintained.
Lastly, a progressive bilingualism allowance should be paid and considered as salary for pension purposes in order to acknowledge the value of knowledge of the two official languages.
I'm now going to say a few words on staffing. The Public Service Alliance of Canada supports the bilingualism policy and does not question the bilingual designation of certain positions. However, it is our view that the designation of bilingual positions should be done in a transparent and fair manner. Bilingualism must be a genuine requirement for a position.
For the determination of language requirements, the linguistic profile must be transparent and fair, so that positions not requiring just limited exchanges in the second language have a different profile from those for which ease comparable to that in the mother tongue is required. Although the designation of a position as bilingual is the employer's responsibility, we feel the public interest would be well served if the employer consulted the bargaining agents. We feel that more creative solutions could be developed if the employer were open to this kind of discussion.
I would also like to talk about workplace culture. The best language training cannot produce tangible results if employees cannot practise their language skills in the workplace. Managers must show leadership in establishing a workplace culture that respects and fosters the use of both official languages. That's also important for individuals belonging to a minority language community. In general, it is Francophones who usually cannot work in their mother tongue because one or two colleagues are not bilingual.
The learning and retention of both official language are thus, in everyone's best interest, a guarantee of professional advancement for some, respect for the right to work in one's language for others and, in all cases, a guarantee of better service to the Canadian public.
In conclusion, these are our recommendations to the federal government: shoulder its responsibility to ensure adequate language training; ensure that funding for language training is held by the central agencies and sheltered from program reviews; provide language training to Anglophone and Francophone employees in all classes and occupational groups throughout their careers, in all regions, paid for by the employer and offered during working hours, in the workplace; develop guidelines on access to training and put in place an appeal process in case of rejection; the determination of language requirements must be transparent and fair following consultation with the bargaining agents; encourage managers to show leadership in establishing a culture in the workplace that respects and fosters the use of both official languages; lastly, provide significant financial support for interpretation and translation in order to promote participation in both official languages in the workplace and increase the number of documents available in both official languages.
Thank you.