Linguistic (in)security at work –  Exploratory survey on official languages among federal government employees in Canada

January 26, 2021 – Defence Stories

The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages (OCOL) conducted a survey of public servants in 2019 to gain insights into their experiences with linguistic insecurity. Nearly 11,000 responses were submitted from employees working in bilingual regions, and from over 4,000 employees outside those areas who also wanted to share their views.

Linguistic insecurity in English or French is the idea that people aren’t comfortable using the languages, whether it’s using their first official language or their second official language. An unequal use of English and French in public service workplaces can cause employees to lose confidence in using the lesser-used language and thus lose their skills. Employees lose, and the public service as a whole loses.

The findings of the survey, which were published last week, helped inform the creation of an infographic and a new tool for public service leaders. These new insights can help the public service build linguistic security by fostering a workplace culture where employees feel free to use their first and second official language and where they can develop and maintain their language skills.