Canadian Heritage committee  Thank you, Mr. Schellenberger. I just want to make a comment: I believe I am appearing before a Canadian parliamentary committee. I see members of all parties around this table. I read the reports submitted by the committee in 2008 and 2003, and the purpose of my presentation, m

Canadian Heritage committee  I want to point out something important that I have realized over my 30-year career with CBC/Radio-Canada. I have seen and felt a lot of cuts. When CBC/Radio-Canada leaves a region, stops covering a region, private companies that were in the same region follow suit. They feel tha

Canadian Heritage committee  No. Right now, the Syndicat des communications de Radio-Canada does not know exactly how this will affect us because, as you know, CBC/Radio-Canada has implemented an early retirement incentive program. The program has been offered to employees under certain conditions, and we do

Canadian Heritage committee  About the cuts?

Canadian Heritage committee  Not yet. As I said, a voluntary retirement program has been offered. I have not yet learned the outcome of the program. Things will follow their course. We were not consulted about which program—

Canadian Heritage committee  My understanding—Marc-Philippe can fill in the details—is that the broadcaster wants to proceed according to its mission. CBC/Radio-Canada told us that it wanted to protect news gathering, for example. In the regions, it will be keeping people responsible for news gathering. Cons

Canadian Heritage committee  Good afternoon, Mr. Schellenberger, ladies and gentlemen of the committee. It has been my privilege to represent the Syndicat des communications de Radio-Canada for the past two years. My name is Alex Levasseur. With me today is the union vice-president, Micheline Provost. Our

Canadian Heritage committee  There will be five left. There are currently nine.

Canadian Heritage committee  There is a certain degree of interfunding between RDI and the Première Chaîne. Some employees of television's Première Chaîne do things that are broadcast on RDI. It's not perfectly divided. We are in the same building. The number of employees in Quebec City is approximately 190.

Canadian Heritage committee  Indeed, what my predecessors said is entirely true. It is important that Radio-Canada be compelled, to a certain degree, to provide services to the regions, as regards both information and general production. In any case, that is part of its present mandate. However, that is not

Canadian Heritage committee  RDI is the subject of these cuts, not the CBC. RDI had two hours of programming a day to serve Quebec City and the eastern part of the province, that is the region extending from Quebec City to the Saguenay, North Shore and Gaspé Peninsula. That mandate no longer exists. The team

Canadian Heritage committee  I'm going to continue on the question of regional production. General programming other than information programs, be it dramas, entertainment programs, youth, and so on, is currently centralized in Montreal. Independent and private producers are concentrated in Montreal because