logo image
  • News
    • People Moves
    • Deal Wins
    • Demand Drivers
    • M&A and Funding
    • Financial Results
    • Technology
    • Academia
    • Industry News
    • Features
    • Machine Translation
    • — Divider —
    • Slator Pro
    • — Divider —
    • Press Releases
    • Sponsored Content
  • Data & Research
    • Research Reports & Pro Guides
    • Language Industry Investor Map
    • Real-Time Charts of Listed LSPs
    • Language Service Provider Index
  • Podcasts & Videos
  • Events
    • Design Thinking – February 2021
    • — Divider —
    • SlatorCon Coverage
    • Other Events
  • Directory
  • RFP Center
  • Jobs
MENU
  • News
    • People Moves
    • Deal Wins
    • Demand Drivers
    • M&A and Funding
    • Financial Results
    • Technology
    • Academia
    • Industry News
    • Features
    • Machine Translation
    • — Divider —
    • Slator Pro
    • — Divider —
    • Press Releases
    • Sponsored Content
  • Data & Research
    • Research Reports & Pro Guides
    • Language Industry Investor Map
    • Real-Time Charts of Listed LSPs
    • Language Service Provider Index
  • Podcasts & Videos
  • Events
    • Design Thinking – February 2021
    • — Divider —
    • SlatorCon Coverage
    • Other Events
  • Directory
  • RFP Center
  • Jobs

Advertise on Slator! Download the 2021 Online Media Kit Now

  • Slator Market Intelligence
  • Slator Advertising Services
  • Slator Advisory
  • Login
Search
Generic filters
Exact matches only
Advertisement
Canada Commissioner ‘Keeping a Close Watch’ On Linguistic Duality

3 years ago

June 20, 2018

Canada Commissioner ‘Keeping a Close Watch’ On Linguistic Duality

Features ·

by Esther Bond

On June 20, 2018

3 years ago
Features ·

by Esther Bond

On June 20, 2018

Canada Commissioner ‘Keeping a Close Watch’ On Linguistic Duality

Raymond Théberge, who has held the Office of Commissioner of Official Languages (OCOL) for Canada since January 2018, has said he will be “keeping a close watch” on a number of critical initiatives aimed at improving language duality in Canada in OCOL’s 2017-2018 annual report.

Linguistic duality, essentially the parity of Canada’s official languages French and English, is something that Théberge calls a “fundamentally Canadian value” in his preface to the 2017-2018 annual report from OCOL, yet something that is “becoming increasingly vulnerable.”

A number of the Commissioner’s priority initiatives with respect to linguistic duality are outlined in the Action Plan for Official Languages 2018-2023: Investing in Our Future, released in March 2018.

Advertisement

The Action Plan states that “Canada was founded with the principle of linguistic duality at the heart of Confederation, signaling the commitment of English- and French-speaking Canadians to work together to make our country thrive. This is why language rights for all Canadians are enshrined in law through the Constitution, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Official Languages Act.”

The Action Plan also recognizes “the importance of the services provided by the Translation Bureau. It supports Canada’s linguistic duality by safeguarding the quality of language in the public service.”

The OCOL annual report also gives special mention to the Translation Bureau’s Language Portal for its work in “helping countless Canadians gain the full benefits of their two official languages” and thereby succeeding “in launching a platform that makes a significant contribution to the promotion of linguistic duality.” The Portal gained traction over 2017-2018, drawing in some four million site visits, and amassing nearly 20,000 followers on social media.  

The report specifically singled out the Translation Bureau’s Our Languages blog, which contains language resources, language-related news and content relevant for official language minority communities.

The special mention will come as a welcome accolade for the Translation Bureau, who appointed a new chief executive, Stéphan Déry, a year ago. The Bureau has faced a barrage of issues in recent years: from workforce challenges to problems with their machine translation (MT) tool, and competition from the private sector.

On a less positive note, the report also documented a number of instances of complaints received by OCOL relating to the provision of language services, such as complaints made after Canada Day claiming that the services offered by officers of the Parliamentary Protective Service and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in the two official languages were not adequate.

In 2017-2018, OCOL also received four complaints specifically relating to the “five-year $500 million agreement” between the Canadian government and Netflix, announced in September 2017. The annual report described how “the complainants alleged that no consideration was given to French-language productions outside Quebec and that the use of English and French in Canadian society is not fully recognized.”

The matter of language provision is a very real challenge for digital content providers such as Netflix, as well as language service providers (LSPs) operating in the media localization space, given the major boom in content production for global audiences and the apparent talent shortage in this specific domain.

As identified in a press release accompanying the OCOL annual report, one of the most pressing issues for OCOL to resolve seems to be the lack of suitable tools for federal institutions to “properly assess themselves, particularly in relation to communications with and services to the public.” Put simply, the federal institutions are simply unable to evaluate how well they are doing with regard to satisfying their obligations around linguistic duality.

To remedy this issue, the OCOL annual report recommends that “before March 2020, the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the President of the Treasury Board conduct a review of the tools they currently use to evaluate federal institutions and that they make any necessary changes in order to present a clear picture of official languages in the federal government.”

TAGS

Action Plan for Official Languages 2018-2023CanadaCanadian Charter of Rights and FreedomsCommissioner of Official LanguagesdualityLanguage PortalOCOLOffice of the Commissioner of Official LanguagesOfficial Languages ActOur Languages blogRaymond ThébergeTranslation Bureau
SHARE
Esther Bond

By Esther Bond

Research Director at Slator. Localization enthusiast, linguist and inquisitor. London native.

Advertisement

SUBSCRIBE TO THE SLATOR WEEKLY

Language Industry Intelligence
In Your Inbox. Every Friday

SUBSCRIBE

SlatorSweepSlatorPro
ResearchRFP CENTER

PUBLISH

PRESS RELEASEDIRECTORY LISTING
JOB ADEVENT LISTING

Bespoke advisory including speaking, briefings and M&A

SLATOR ADVISORY
Advertisement

Featured Reports

See all
Slator 2020 Language Industry M&A and Funding Report

Slator 2020 Language Industry M&A and Funding Report

by Slator

Slator 2021 Data-for-AI Market Report

Slator 2021 Data-for-AI Market Report

by Slator

Slator 2020 Medtech Translation and Localization Report

Slator 2020 Medtech Translation and Localization Report

by Slator

Pro Guide: Sales and Marketing for Language Service Providers

Pro Guide: Sales and Marketing for Language Service Providers

by Slator

Press Releases

See all
Rheinschrift Language Services – Strategic Improvements and Workforce Expansion in 2021

Rheinschrift Language Services – Strategic Improvements and Workforce Expansion in 2021

by Rheinschrift Language Services

Memsource Acquires Phrase

Memsource Acquires Phrase

by Memsource

Across Systems will be part of the Volaris Group

Across Systems will be part of the Volaris Group

by Across Systems GmbH

Upcoming Events

See All
  1. Memsource MT Post-Editing Pricing Models Webinar

    Pricing Models for MT Post-Editing Workshop

    by Memsource

    · February 3

    Hear a panel of innovative localization professionals share different approaches for MT post-editing pricing.

    More info FREE

Featured Companies

See all
Text United

Text United

Memsource

Memsource

Wordbank

Wordbank

Protranslating

Protranslating

Seprotec

Seprotec

Versacom

Versacom

SDL

SDL

Smartling

Smartling

Lingotek

Lingotek

XTM International

XTM International

Smartcat

Smartcat

Translators without Borders

Translators without Borders

STAR Group

STAR Group

memoQ Translation Technologies

memoQ Translation Technologies

Advertisement

Popular articles

Why Netflix Shut Down Its Translation Portal Hermes

Why Netflix Shut Down Its Translation Portal Hermes

by Esther Bond

Top Language Industry Quotes of 2020

Top Language Industry Quotes of 2020

by Monica Jamieson

The Slator 2020 Language Service Provider Index

The Slator 2020 Language Service Provider Index

by Slator

SlatorPod: The Weekly Language Industry Podcast

connect with us

footer logo

Slator makes business sense of the language services and technology market.

Our Company

  • Support
  • About us
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy

Subscribe to the Slator Weekly

Language Industry Intelligence
In Your Inbox. Every Friday

© 2021 Slator. All rights reserved.

Sign up to the Slator Weekly

Join over 13,000 subscribers and get the latest language industry intelligence every Friday

Your information will never be shared with third parties. No Spam.