Reprimanded for chats in Spanish
Workers at Institut de cardiologie must speak French, even on break
Despite touting a “cultural diversity” policy for employees and patients, managers at the Institut de cardiologie de Montréal have reprimanded a group of workers for speaking to each other occasionally in an Arabic dialect and in Spanish — even when they’re on break.
The workers, some of whom were born in Algeria, have been told they must speak French all the time while at work, even when discussing personal matters among themselves.
One worker told the Montreal Gazette he was scolded for responding in English to an anglophone patient at the east-end hospital.
The de-facto all-French policy has been in force for the past two years despite the fact Quebec’s Language Charter does not prohibit workers from holding a private conversation in a mother tongue other than French. What’s more, the provincial health act ensures “English-speaking persons are entitled to receive health services and social services in the English language.”
“It’s discrimination,” said a worker who was reprimanded for chatting with colleagues in Spanish and for addressing the anglophone patient in English.
The employee said he communicates in French with co-workers, managers and patients. But he switches to Spanish during private conversations with Hispanic colleagues at the hospital.
He agreed to be interviewed on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
The workers urged the hospital administration last year to provide them with a legal opinion, as a manager had promised, that justifies the all-French policy.
When no opinion was forthcoming, they sent a letter last December to the chairperson of the board, Pierre Anctil, requesting that he raise the matter at the next board meeting.
When Antcil did not reply to their letter or broach the issue at a board meeting, the workers contacted Fo Niemi, executive director of the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR). Neimi, in turn, sent a letter to Antcil on March 28.
“We have come to the conclusion that the language directive in question, as well as the sanctions imposed on certain employees, seriously undermine the constitutional rights of these employees guaranteed under the various provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,” Niemi wrote.
In an interview, Niemi said the workers are fearful and “they feel very much under scrutiny. They’re intimidated.”
A technician of Algerian descent told the Montreal Gazette that his previous department head didn’t mind when he spoke in an Arabic dialect with his three other colleagues. But the current department supervisor has adopted a zero-tolerance policy.
“It really shocked us,” he said. “We feel a lot of pressure and harassment.”
Julie Letourneau, a spokesperson for the Office Québécois de la langue français (OQLF), noted that an institution has the right to “establish a linguistic policy that can stipulate the moments when the use of French is mandatory, but it has to be related to work.”
Asked whether the language charter explicitly requires that conversations between employees must always be in French, she responded: “Absolutely not.”
“The fact that (someone) speaks a language other than French at work is not necessarily a violation,” Letourneau explained. “It’s really the employer that has the responsibility to establish the distinction between private conversations — because the charter does not apply to private conversations — and communications that are truly related to work.”
Marie-Claude Pageau, a spokesperson for the heart institute, said the board will likely raise the matter at its next meeting, on May 13.
“We received a letter from CRARR that was addressed to our board chairman. We’re in the process of reflecting on this question.
“We’re going to truly analyze what should become the (linguistic) policy,” Pageau added. “It’s a delicate issue. We will respect the rights and freedoms of our users, and everyone who works at the Institute, no matter the title.”
Two years ago, CRARR took up the case of a former manager at l’Office municipal d’habitation de Laval who quit after managers warned employees not to converse in Spanish during office hours, except during lunch.
At the time, Letourneau of the OQLF offered a slightly different comment on the use of languages other than French in the workplace.
“If (employees) decide to speak (to each other) in another language other than French, there’s no problem — even if it concerns work,” Letourneau said. aderfel@postmedia.com twitter.com/Aaron_Derfel