A woman glances at Governor General Mary Simon after they take a photo together after a community gathering on Tuesday, May 10, 2022 in Kangiqsualujjuaq, Que. Senior government officials have explored offering indigenous language training to federal employees and possible exemptions for those who already speak one from requiring fluency in both English and French, recent documents show. Deputy ministers from various departments discussed the matter last autumn. A memo, released to The Canadian Press under federal access to information laws, noted a “growing tension” between official language requirements and Indigenous languages. Under Canada’s Official Languages Act, federal institutions must provide work environments for employees to communicate in both French and English and offer services to Canadians in either language. Therefore, communication in both is expected for senior management and there are some public service jobs where bilingualism is mandatory. There is, however, room for an employee to take classes and learn French or English as a second language. The memorandum issued last fall said a task force was set up to make changes to official language requirements. He said some indigenous civil servants who are part of a network of about 400 who work for the federal government have argued for the need for a “blanket exemption”. “My personal view is that there are opportunities for an exception – if the person speaks an Indigenous language,” Gina Wilson, the deputy minister who advocates for the needs of federal Indigenous public servants, wrote in an email to colleagues last November. “Our GG (Governor General) is a good example.” The appointment of Inuk leader Mary Simon in 2021 has sparked a debate – and some controversy – about bilingualism in Canada’s highest offices, given how Simon, the first Indigenous person to be named Governor General, spoke English and Inuktitut, but no French . Simon, who was born in Kangiqsualujjuaq, in the Nunavik region of northern Quebec, said she attended a federal day school and could not learn French. She pledged to do so after her appointment and has been taking classes, delivering a few French remarks in public speeches. Official Languages Commissioner Raymond Théberge said more than 1,000 complaints about Simon’s lack of French were made to his office after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed her to the post. read more Do you have an opinion? Send it to [email protected]
