I admit I'm sometimes tempted by that analogy with people who would like to become judges, but who have forgotten to take a law course. Although bilingualism is a major advantage, it must be acknowledged that only 40% of positions in the public service are designated bilingual. Furthermore, the right of employees to work in their language is more pronounced in certain regions of the country. It must also be acknowledged that not all students from across the country have access to appropriate language training in the other official language.
What we're trying to do is to send universities and the provinces the message that this isn't an absolute criterion for entering the public service, but it's definitely essential in order to rise through the ranks. We're also trying to make the public service understand how important it is to include the language issue in the training plans of new employees on their arrival in the public service, rather than wait for their career to progress as far as a supervisory position.
For the first time, I'm being told about the ongoing language training needs not only of anglophones, but also for francophones who arrive in Ottawa.
We shouldn't claim that every citizen has an obligation to become bilingual. The goal of the policy is for the government to be able to serve citizens in the language of their choice. Before even ensuring that people across the country have equal access to quality language training in both official languages, there will inevitably always be a need for employee training, and it is important to offer employees training at the very start of their career.