After unanimously adopting the recommendations of a report on its services in French, the City of Cornwall says it wants to set new “standards”.
Generally speaking, the city’s chief administrator, Mathieu Fleury, believes that the conclusions are rather positive. “It’s not chaos, it’s an observation. Then the observation shows us that there are beautiful things in place. Is there room for improvement? Absolutely,” he says in an interview with Duty.
“There are risks in making this kind of report, because the statistics speak in themselves, and could have unbalanced the conversation a little,” underlines the Franco-Ontarian.
The initiative was highlighted Tuesday by the president of the Assembly of the Francophonie of Ontario, Fabien Hébert, who believes that “other municipalities should follow suit.” “There is a real economic advantage to being bilingual, and the City of Cornwall seems to see it. »
In the report, commissioned by Mayor Justin Towndale on September 25, we learn that 46% of City employees know how to speak French. It is also noted that only a little more than half of those working on the front line for paramedic and fire services know how to speak the language.
“The issues in the health sector, regardless of which province we are in, are real,” recognizes Mathieu Fleury, explaining that “the workforce is difficult to reach.” “In the years to come, the analysis will be able to be more in-depth. If we notice that there are trends or places more at risk, we will take appropriate measures. […] Everything is not clear at the moment, but we are continuing our commitment. »
However, these statistics do not mean “that we do not have a range of services,” Mr. Fleury clarifies. The 9-1-1 call center, for example, is the responsibility of the City of Ottawa, which has an “obligation” to be able to respond in French, he defends.
Recommendations accepted
None of the report’s recommendations are aimed directly at the Department of Paramedic Services. Clerk Manon Levesque, who drafted the document, however suggested that elected officials follow several “next steps,” such as offering French classes to employees.
Mme Levesque also recommends meeting with Cornwall’s French-speaking communities to obtain their “comments” and “expectations”, as well as “revising the city’s bilingualism policy” to publish the minutes of municipal council meetings in both languages, and establish an active offer of services in French.
“Although the City of Cornwall is currently working to ensure that residents receive services in French, if requested, it will adopt a service model where French is actively offered, changing the responsibility of residents to City staff,” we can read in the document.
All the recommendations were unanimously adopted on Tuesday by the municipal council, which makes it possible to “formalize”, according to Mr. Fleury, certain practices already in place, and to set new “standards”.
The 19 positions designated bilingual in 2008 will also be reviewed to ensure that they reflect current reality. “The intention is not to displace people, it is to recalibrate our portrait,” Mr. Fleury insisted.
If the measures received “overall support”, he recognizes that the imposition of bilingualism to fill certain designated vacant positions can be perceived as “a block to access to employment” for Anglophones, and does not “really want not minimize” these concerns.
A diverse Francophonie
The City of Cornwall adopted a policy on bilingualism in 2003. Since its revision in 2008, “there have clearly been changes” in the presence of French in this small town located on the edge of the American border, said municipal councilor Sarah Good on Tuesday evening.
If his colleague Claude E. McIntosh, several decades older than him, testified to an era of “assimilation” during which French speakers “could not adhere [au club de golf de la ville] », Mme Good said his generation is witnessing a “real revitalization” of French.
“The counties surrounding the city of Cornwall are heavily English-speaking, but […] there is always a good pocket of Francophones” in the municipality, confirms Mr. Fleury, who explains that the Franco-Ontarians native to the municipality are now joined by Anglophones who “send their children to immersion schools”. or even “immigrant populations, who are strongly French-speaking”.
The clerk declared that “we really need to change our mentality. People who master French are not the only French speakers in our community.” According to her, most people who were born in Cornwall can speak French, but do not dare to do so in public. “Let’s not judge them,” she asked.
This report is supported by the Local Journalism Initiative, funded by the Government of Canada.