With all due respect, Ms. McEvoy, I would say that the question of cost is your obligation. At some stage, you have to get the job done. Isn't that so?
When you hire a doctor, you make sure that he is properly trained. If you want bilingual employees, then the training must be given.
There is something I would like to know. When a complaint is filed on a given employee of Air Canada, and you can identify that employee, is he or she dealt with? Is the employee asked to participate in a French course in order to learn how to say yes, or thank you, or to learn how to understand someone who asks for a soft drink, and to reply that he will go and get one?
Do you teach them the basic elements of providing service? We're not asking them to learn Le Petit Larousse off by heart.