Management (15%)

a) An accountability framework, an action plan and accountability mechanisms are in place (5%)

The various Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) policies describe the official languages (OL) roles and responsibilities and how the obligations set out in the Official Languages Act (the Act) will be fulfilled. These policies serve as an accountability framework for the Act.

The Action Plan for Part IV, V and VI, approved by senior management, includes the objectives to be achieved, planned activities and timelines. Achievement of Action Plan objectives is assessed in the OL Annual Review (quantitative review) submitted to the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada (PSHRMAC) and signed by the President. The Community Development Division (responsible for section 41) also submits an action plan on Part VII to Canadian Heritage.

The Champion gave an OL presentation to the Executive Committee in November 2006. Directors and Directors General have an OL performance clause in their contracts. The internal OL committee plays an important role in coordinating and monitoring the application of the OL Program at ACOA.

B

b) Visibility of official languages in the organization (5%)

The 2006-2007 Report on Plans and Priorities describes planned activities with federal councils and identifies activities related to OL objectives.The 2005-2006 Performance Report also devotes a section to official languages. There are no internal OL audits. At this time, auditing activities do not include OL within their framework.

The Agency's Executive Committee, which is comprised of the President and vice-presidents, and the management committees of the regional offices both discuss the various OL-related activities The OL Champion is the Director General, Regional Operations and Programs at the New Brunswick ACOA office.

The President has integrated workplace OL promotion and service delivery in her performance management agreement. The President sat on the Committee of Deputy Ministers Responsible for OL. The Assistant Deputy Ministers' Committee, on which sits the Vice-President, New Brunswick, replaced this committee.

There is a network of OL champions from all Atlantic regions and from head office. A committee was also created comprised of these champions and representatives from the Human Resources Divisions (Parts IV, V and VI), the Community Development Division (Part VII) from head office and the regions, as well as human resources advisors. The team's objective is to promote the OL Program and foster the creation of an institutional culture that is aware of official languages issues, and to ensure a collaborative approach in the integration of OL in ACOA operations.

B

c) Complaints (5%)

ACOA organized a meeting at the end of January 2006 with representatives from the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages (OCOL) to strengthen working relationships and discuss strategic issues related to complaints. The complaint management process requires the participation of managers and, if applicable, of the appropriate officials from the Community Development Division, Human Resources Division and Legal Services. This process fosters the sharing of information to prevent the recurrence of problems. Reports on the nature of complaints and the measures taken are also sent to management. There is a specific directive on language of work complaints.

A

Sub-total:

B

Service to the Public - Part IV (25%)

a) Bilingual services advertised to the public and sufficient bilingual staff (3%)

Designated bilingual offices are identified in Burolis, in the blue pages and on the ACOA website.

95% of employees in bilingual positions serving the public meet the language requirements of their position. (Source: Position and Classification Information System ( PCIS ), March 31, 2006 )

B

b) Findings on active offer and service delivery (15%)

According to observations of in-person service made by OCOL between mid-June and mid-July 2006, an active visual offer was present in 69% of cases, an active offer by staff was made in 0% of cases, while service in the language of the linguistic minority was adequate in 85% of cases.

According to observations of service on the telephone made by OCOL between mid-June and mid-July 2006, an active offer by staff or by an automated system was made in 93% of cases, while service in the language of the linguistic minority was adequate in 86% of cases.

C

c) Service agreements delivered by third parties or in partnership provide for the delivery of bilingual services (2%)

The ACOA Official Languages Policy indicates that contractual agreements with the public and private sectors must include OL clauses. This policy also sets out the obligations of the parties in contribution agreements. Program officers check for the presence and verify the contents of this clause. The policy also contains a section on service to the public, which applies to third parties acting on behalf of ACOA.

Complaints received, and contribution and contract reports serve as control mechanisms to confirm that third parties deliver quality services in both OL.

B

d) Policy on service to the public and bilingual services quality monitoring (5%)

The “ACOA Obligations - Service to the Public” policy sets out the requirements related to communications and bilingual service delivery, and also raises the awareness of all personnel of ACOA's commitment to respect the equality of English and French.

The Human Resources Branch, in collaboration with ACOA's Policy and Programs Branch, gave presentations on the Act at head office, in regional offices and at the Ottawa office in February 2006. These presentations dealt with Part IV in great detail.

C

Sub-total:

C

Language of Work - Part V (25%)

a) Language of work policy and adequate bilingual supervision (12.5%)

The “ACOA Language of Work, Rights and Responsibilities” policy outlines the rights and responsibilities related to obtaining personal and central services, work instruments and computer systems, supervision, the language of meetings, training and professional development, and internal communications. Moreover, a procedure is in place for filing language of work complaints.

Language training is highlighted in employee personal training plans and is also covered in performance evaluation agreements. A letter of congratulations and a certificate signed by the President and the Champion are sent to employees who successfully complete language training. The Human Resources Branch produced an information kit for offices that provide bilingual service. It contains references and important information on service in both official languages.

As of March 31, 2006, the Position and Classification Information System (PCIS) indicated that 92% of senior management and 97% of supervisors who must communicate with their staff in both languages in bilingual regions are bilingual.

B

b) Use of each official language in the workplace (12.5%)

Awareness-raising sessions dealing with, among other things, Part V were given across ACOA. Participants were informed of their language of work rights and obligations.

The Executive Committee adopted a practice to promote the use of the minority language whereby at least one agenda item for each Committee meeting must be presented in French (including any accompanying documents), and any subsequent discussions must be conducted in French. The New Brunswick regional office encourages employees to speak French at work by setting aside one day a week for that purpose. They are also encouraged to wear a button indicating their desire to practise speaking French. The Champion has asked each region to inform her of initiatives on language of work.

The Agency uses complaints received and the results of the public service survey as control mechanisms for the application of the Policy on Language of Work.

The Public Service Employee Survey showed that overall, 88% of Francophone respondents in the National Capital Region (NCR), in New Brunswick and in bilingual regions of Ontario "strongly agreed" or "mostly agreed" with the language of work regime. There is no ACOA office in Quebec.

B

Sub-total:

B

Equitable Participation  - Part VI (10%)

a) Percentage of Francophone participation throughout Canada (5%)

Overall, the workforce is 31.3% Francophone. (Source, PCIS, March 31, 2006)

A

b) Percentage of Anglophone participation in Quebec (5%)

ACOA does not have any offices in Quebec. All employees are located in the Atlantic Region and in Ottawa (one office).

N/A

Sub-total:

A

Development of Official Language Minority Communities and Promotion of Linguistic Duality - Part  VII (25%)

a) Strategic planning and the development of policies and programs take into account the development of official language minority communities (12.5%)

ACOA produces an action plan for the implementation of section 41 of the Act and an annual status report. Section 41 objectives are included in departmental planning and accountability documents. An internal process is underway to incorporate a mandatory field on the application of section 41 in the electronic project summary form used for project evaluation. Memoranda to Cabinet are reviewed by the Policy Division, in collaboration with the Programs Division, to ensure that they take into account the impact on official language minority communities (OLMCs).

Following the amendments to the Act, new obligations to take positive measures to enhance the vitality of the English and French linguistic minorities in Canada and support and assist their development were discussed at a Management Committee meeting, and the Champion forwarded an email on the issue to directors and directors general. ACOA's OL Champion appointed champions in the Agency's regional offices. A committee comprised of these champions and representatives from the Human Resources Branch and the Programs Division at head office was also created to promote the OL Program and foster an OL culture at ACOA.

In addition to ensuring that coordinators participate in the National Committee of Coordinators Responsible for the Implementation of Section 41 and the National Committee on Economic Development and Employability, ACOA also has a team of regional coordinators, who are well known to OLMCs and who provide liaison services and distribute information internally. ACOA employees have established some partnerships in the communities and continue to work closely with them. The February 2006 Atlantic Region tour helped to further raise employee awareness and share information on OL and OLMCs. This activity will contribute to making the Act one of the items to be reviewed as part of all funding applications submitted to ACOA.

Under its mandate to develop Atlantic regions and communities, ACOA's goal is to help strengthen the economic development of OLMCs. As such, the Agency believes that its policies and programs meet the obligation of fostering the development of OLMCs. In 2005-2006, ACOA supported 69 OLMC projects worth more than $10 million. U nder an agreement signed with Industry Canada , ACOA also administers seven telelearning content development pilot projects conducted by Francophone post-secondary educational institutions. In partnership with other federal departments, ACOA has contributed to funding a project to set up an integrated service centre that provides services in French in the OLMC on the Port-au-Port peninsula in Newfoundland and Labrador.

There is ongoing consultation with OLMCs. ACOA has undertaken a number of formal and informal consultations and discussions with OLMCs to find out their priorities. ACOA participates, for example, in the National Committee of Coordinators Responsible for the Implementation of Section 41 of the Act, the National Committee on Economic Development and Employability and the Citizenship and Immigration Canada Steering Committee for immigration to OLMCs. Regional coordinators participate in meetings of the OL Sub-Committee of the Federal Council of their respective province. For example, the Prince Edward Island Federal Council holds activities such as weekly breakfast-clubs at which guest speakers (e.g., OLMC members) discuss a variety of topics.

Moreover, ACOA personnel regularly participate in various forums and symposiums where OLMC priorities are discussed, as well as in the annual general meetings of many OLMC agencies. Consultations conducted at these meetings allow both parties to share ideas on the community's needs and common priorities. Another committee created by the ACOA personnel responsible for section 41 facilitates the exchange of information and the identification of areas of collaboration with the Economic Development and Employability Networks.

The information gathered on the needs of OLMCs, among others, is then shared locally and with the internal committee made up of representatives from other branches. ACOA posts its OL action plan and status report on its website. As a result, OLMCs have access to information on OL activities and are kept abreast of efforts made to contribute to the development of their respective communities. Furthermore, the ACOA Official Languages Action Plan is shared with French-language economic development agencies in the region before final approval and submission to the Department of Canadian Heritage.

Measures to foster regional OLMC development have already been included in the ACOA Action Plan. This plan takes into account the needs expressed by OLMCs. The current Action Plan describes the objectives of the activities, expected results and responsibilities. There are no performance indicators as such.

B

b) Strategic planning and the development of policies and programs take into account the promotion of linguistic duality (12.5%)

ACOA produces an action plan for the implementation of section 41 of the Act and an annual status report. The objectives of section 41 are included in departmental planning and accountability documents. Memoranda to Cabinet are reviewed by the Policy Division, in collaboration with the Programs Division, to ensure that they take into account the obligation to promote linguistic duality.

Following the amendments to the Act, new obligations to take positive measures to promote the full recognition and use of both English and French in Canadian society were discussed at a Management Committee meeting. The Committee, which is comprised of champions and representatives from the Human Resources Branch and Community Development Division at head office, has the mandate of promoting the OL Program and fostering an OL culture at ACOA. In addition to a National Coordinator, ACOA also has a team of regional coordinators to provide regional liaison and distribute information internally. A section on promoting linguistic duality among all personnel was included in the presentation given in February 2006 during the Atlantic Region tour.

Given its mandate to foster the economic development of the regions and communities, ACOA believes that its policies and programs meet the obligation of promoting linguistic duality. At the ACOA regional office in New Brunswick, Francophone employees are encouraged to use their first official language at work in order to raise awareness among all staff about the richness of linguistic duality. ACOA actively participates in the Semaine de la francophonie organized by the New Brunswick Federal Council.

The current action plan does not provide for specific measures to promote linguistic duality. This plan is being revised to comply with the changes to the Act and will take into account the promotion of linguistic duality.

B

Sub-total:

B

OVERALL RATING

B