This text is taken from the Courrier de l’économie of January 23, 2023. To subscribe, click here.
For newcomers, temporary or permanent, learning to speak French is harder said than done, especially when they work overtime.
By producing the documentary Language at work. Migrate to French at work, the Quebec Federation of Labor (FTQ) wanted to send a message: the best place to take French lessons for an immigrant is directly at their workplace, with their colleagues. It is a question not only of health and safety, but also of integration into the host community, believes the secretary general of the FTQ, Denis Bolduc.
Directed by Alexis Chartrand, the film captures the testimonies and follows the journey of several French workers and teachers. The emphasis is on the positive effects of learning the language in their lives, but also on pitfalls. Among these, there are the long hours of work that the latter perform to provide for the needs of their families. There is also uncertainty about their status, with some having to return to their country of origin while awaiting the renewal of their work permits.
Mr. Bolduc wants to encourage companies to participate in francization programs in collaboration with the provincial government, like the manufacturing companies shown in the documentary, which have very high rates of immigrant personnel. “It should be done more,” said the secretary general.
It is also important to protect assets, he believes, since these programs are not immune to cancellation. In September, The duty had revealed that the Department of Immigration had withdrawn its subsidy to Peerless, a clothing factory which is also visited in the documentary. Quebec then quickly did an about-face.
First made available in the spring of 2020, this touching film had a more official launch last week as part of the 33rd Congress of the FTQ. It can be viewed for free on YouTube.