"Canada's official languages policy makes English and French the country's official languages in federal institutions. The policy has succeeded in fostering equitable representation of both official language groups in the federal public service and has improved capacities for the public service to serve the citizenry in its official language of choice. It is a puzzle, however, that the Canadian federal public service continues to operate predominantly in English-despite the legislative equality of both official languages as languages of work. This begs the question: why is there still inequitable access to French as a language of work in the federal public service despite the promise of the Official Languages Act (OLA) in 1969 for choice in language of work and the OLA 1988 that made the choice a claimable right? This book argues that the ""virtual"" failure of language of work is a function of how the official languages program was implemented: ultimately, it was unable to challenge the path dependency within the federal public service to operate predominantly in English.
Only a close examination of the roles of actors and institutions that influenced the process, and a critical look at the lack of structural change, inadequate managerial engagement and the false sense that official languages are engrained in the public service, can explain the persistence of English as the dominant language of work. Rooted in extensive archival analysis and semi-directed interviews with former and current political and bureaucratic officials engaged in the implementation of the OLA, this book undertakes a historical analysis of efforts related to official languages in the federal public service in the National Capital Region from 1967-2013, providing the first in-depth study of this formative Canadian issue."
By:
Helaina Gaspard
Imprint: University of Ottawa Press
Country of Publication: Canada
Dimensions:
Height: 229mm,
Width: 152mm,
Weight: 220g
ISBN: 9780776623351
ISBN 10: 0776623354
Series: Politics and Public Policy
Pages: 162
Publication Date: 05 March 2019
Audience:
General/trade
,
Professional and scholarly
,
ELT Advanced
,
Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Preface by Graham Fraser Introduction Official Languages and the Federal Public Service CHAPTER 1: Theoretical Foundations The Politics of Language Representative Bureaucracy Historical Institutionalism and Layering CHAPTER 2: Check Your Hat and Your Language at the Door (1867-1967) Introduction The Early Civil Service Historical Context The Strike at Trois-Rivières Ernest Lapointe—Prime Minister King’s Quebec Lieutenant L’Ordre Jacques Cartier The Jean Committee Early Reform Efforts The Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism, and Prime Minister Pearson’s Promise Conclusion CHAPTER 3: The Official Languages Act, 1969 (1968–1972) Introduction Adopting the OLA 1969 Charting a Course for Implementation French-Language Units (FLUs) Bilingual Districts Linguistic Designation of Positions Conclusion CHAPTER 4: If At First You Don’t Succeed, Layer, Layer, and Then Layer Again (1973–1981) Introduction The 1973 Parliamentary Resolution on Official Languages Decentralizing Program Management The Gens de l’Air Crisis and National Unity Reorganizing and Restructuring the Public Service Management-centric Changes to the Official Languages Program (1981) Conclusion CHAPTER 5: The OLA and Part V: The Right to Choose Your Language of Work (1982–2013) Introduction Maintaining the Status Quo Prime Minister Mulroney’s Progressive Conservatives and the Official Languages Act The Official Languages Act, 1988 Part V: Official Language of Work Rights Implementing Part V Giving Meaning to Part V Conclusion Conclusion: Ideas, Institutions, and Actors Ideas Institutions Actors Conclusion Appendix: Principal Actors Department of the Secretary of State Treasury Board Secretariat Public Service Commission (PSC) Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages Staff Unions Bibliography Index
Helaina Gaspard, PhD, is Director, Governance and Institutions at the Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy at the University of Ottawa.
Reviews for Canada’s Official Languages: Policy Versus Work Practice in the Federal Public Service
Compelling and convincing : This book is situated at the confluence of public administration and language policy and manages to offer an important and original contribution to both fields. (...) Gaspard develops a compelling analytical narrative around institutionalism, path dependency and layering to explain the shortcomings of the successive language reforms and the role of various actors within the state apparatus. (...) This book should be included in reading lists and research on public administration in Canada. It convincingly illustrates the amount of time and effort devoted to language reform within the public service in Canada, which has not received the necessary attention from the field. It also has the potential to foster comparative studies with other countries that aim to have a linguistically representative bureaucracy. Gaspard offers a unique perspective that must not go unnoticed. -- Martin Normand * Canadian Journal of Political Science * Vous allez faire tout un impact avec ce que vous avez trouve la-dedans. C'est un travail de moine que vous avez fait. A lire absolument! -- Michel Picard
- Long-listed for 2019 Hilll Times' List of 100 Best Non-Fiction Canadian Book (Canada) 2019
- Long-listed for 2019 Hilll Times’ List of 100 Best Non-Fiction Canadian Book (Canada) 2019
- Winner of 2019 Hilll Times' List of 100 Best Non-Fiction Canadian Book (Canada) 2019
