BACKGROUND
- The first Official Languages Act (OLA), enacted in 1969, recognized the equal status of English and French throughout the federal administration, and its primary goal was to ensure that Canadian citizens had access to federal services in the official language of their choice.
- The OLA is only applicable to federal institutions and cannot be applied to provincial or municipal governments.
- Given the importance and significance of Canadian National (CN) railway as a pan-Canadian rail carrier during its privatization in 1995, specific measures were included in the enabling legislation, the CN Commercialization Act, which required CN to continue adhering to the OLA as a federal institution.
- Under the OLA and as a federal institution, CN is obligated to provide services in the official language of choice without delay,and ensure that the services provided must be of equal quality regardless of language of choice.
- On March 1st, 2022, the Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency tabled Bill C-13 in the House of Commons, which is an Act to amend the OLA.
- Bill C-13 proposes to expand and reinforce several elements of the OLA. Notably, this includes a new power entrusted to the Commissioner of Official Languages to impose administrative monetary penalties (AMPs) to certain privatized or Crown corporations in the field of transportation who offer a service to the travelling public.
ENFORCEMENT
- The Commissioner of Official Languages is responsible for ensuring compliance with the spirit of the OLA within federal institutions, including the promotion of linguistic duality and the equality of both official languages within Canadian society. The Commissioner is empowered to hear complaints, conduct inquiries, and intervene in the courts. The Commissioner produces an annual report to Parliament on the official languages’ activities carried out by their office. The Treasury Board is responsible for conducting monitoring and oversight of federal institutions compliance with applicable policies and directives.
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