SURVEY: LANGUAGE OF WORK OF FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVANTS WORKING IN NEW BRUNSWICK
Page 9 of 9
September, 2005
What is the purpose of this survey?
The purpose of this survey is to determine the extent to which Canada’s two official languages (English and French) are used as languages of work in New Brunswick.
Who gets the questionnaire?
A sampling of civil servants in a number of federal offices located in New Brunswick received the questionnaire. Participants were randomly selected from the Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada personnel database.
How long will it take to complete the questionnaire?
Completing the questionnaire should take no more than 30 minutes of your time.
Why should I respond?
As an employee of an institution subject to the Official Languages Act, bilingualism in the workplace is a subject that directly affects you on a daily basis. This survey provides you with an opportunity to express your opinion on this subject and to share with your federal colleagues practical solutions adapted to your work environment.
The Commissioner of Official Languages will publish the results of this survey in the spring of 2006.
What if I have questions?
Please contact The Antima Group/TNS Canadian Facts at 1-800- 663- 6023
Where do I send my completed questionnaire?
Please return your completed questionnaire in the enclosed return self-addressed envelope.
Deadline: September 29, 2005
ANY INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE WILL BE KEPT CONFIDENTIAL.
YOUR PARTICIPATION IS VOLUNTARY.
PART 1
This part deals with basic information on your background and the languages used in your immediate work environment.
1. Your mother tongue (the language you first learned as a child and still understand today) is:
(Please check the appropriate box)
French
English
neither English nor French. This other language is ………………………………….
2. Your first official language is (the language that, regardless of your ethnic origin or first language learned, you identify most closely with):
French
English
3. Gender: Female: Male:
4. Age:
| less than 20 yrs0 | 20-29 yrs | 30-39 yrs | 40-49 yrs |
| 50-59 yrs | 60 yrs and up |
5. Please indicate the percentage of your schooling that took place in English and in French at
each level.
| ...in French | ...in English | ...other language | ||||
| a–Primary | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| b–Secondary | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| c–College (or other | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| d–University (BA, BSc, | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| e–Post-graduate | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
6. The following relate to the use of English and French in various situations encountered outside the workplace. Please indicate a percentage (%) for each of the following:
| ...in English | ...in French |
| ...other language | |||
| a–The language I use at | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| b–The language I use at | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| c–Up to now, my children | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| d–I watch television in | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| e–I read newspapers, | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| f–The language I use with | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| g–The language I use in | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
| h–Generally, the language | _______% | + | _______% | + | _______% | = 100% |
7. Language requirements of your position:
French essential
English essential
French or English essential (either/or)
Bilingual
8. Indicate the occupational category that best represents your position:
Management
Middle management / senior officer
Officer
Administrative Support
9. Name of your department:
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| Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency |
| Industry Canada |
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| Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada |
| Justice Canada |
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| Veterans Affairs Canada |
| Passeport Canada |
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| Canadian Firearms Centre |
| Canadian Heritage |
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| Citizenship and Immigration Canada |
| Fisheries and Oceans Canada |
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| National Parole Board |
| Department of Human Resources |
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| Status of Women Canada |
| Natural Resources Canada |
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| National Defence |
| Health Canada |
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| Social Development Canada |
| Correctional Service of Canada |
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| Environment Canada |
| Transport Canada |
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| Royal Canadian Mounted Police |
| Public Works and Government Services Canada |
10. You received your personnel or central services from
an office located in New Brunswick
an office located in Nova Scotia
an office located in the National Capital Region
an office located in another part of the country
11. Rate your knowledge of both official languages (English and French) using the scale provided:
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| Not at all | With | Moderately | Quite | Fluently |
| a–I speak French |
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| b–I write in French |
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| c–I understand spoken French |
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| d–I understand written French |
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| e–I speak English |
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| f–I write in English |
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| g–I understand spoken English |
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| h–I understand written English |
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In the following questions, you are asked to identify the linguistic makeup of your work unit. Your work unit is comprised of your supervisor and the colleagues and subordinates with whom you currently and regularly interact. In the case where a supervisor/colleague/subordinate does not have English or French as his/her mother tongue, please choose the linguistic group you feel this person relates to the most.
12. In your opinion, your supervisor (the person to whom you report directly) is:
(Please check the appropriate box)
a bilingual Francophone (with a good knowledge of English)
a unilingual Francophone
a bilingual Anglophone (with a good knowledge of French)
a unilingual Anglophone
13. In your opinion, how many of your colleagues are:
(Please indicate the number in each case)
_______ bilingual Francophone(s) (with a good knowledge of English)
_______ unilingual Francophone(s)
_______ bilingual Anglophone(s) (with a good knowledge of French)
_______ unilingual Anglophone(s)
14. In your opinion, how many of your subordinates are:
(Please indicate the number in each case)
_______ bilingual Anglophone(s) (with a good knowledge of French)
_______ unilingual Anglophone(s)
_______ bilingual Francophone(s) (with a good knowledge of English))
_______ unilingual Anglophone(s)
15. Since you became a federal employee, your language skills have…
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| deteriorated | deteriorated | remained about | improved | greatly |
| in English |
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| in French |
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PART 2
This part deals with the extent to which you use the two official languages in various work situations.
16. What percentage (%) of your work day is spent doing the following:
| ...in English | ...in French | ||||
| a–reading…………..….. | _______% | + | _______% | = | 100% |
| b–writing……..…..... | _______% | + | _______% | = | 100% |
| c–speaking……....… | _______% | + | _______% | = | 100% |
| d–listening……........ | _______% | + | _______% | = | 100% |
17. Verbal Communications:
| A – Currently, you use your first official language… | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Never | Some-times | Often | Most of the time | Always | Not applicable | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| a–with your supervisor |
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| b–with colleagues with whom |
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| c–with your subordinates |
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| d–during meetings with |
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| e–during large-scale meetings |
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| f–during meetings with |
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| g–with Francophone members |
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| h–with Anglophone members |
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| B – Ideally, you would prefer to use your first official language… | ||||
| More often | Less often | No change | Not applicable | |
| a–with your supervisor |
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| b–with the colleagues with |
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| c–during meetings with |
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| d–during large-scale meetings |
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| e–during meetings with |
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18. Written Communications (memoranda, e-mails, etc.):
| A – Currently, you write in your first official language… |
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Never |
Sometimes |
Often | Most of the time |
Always |
Not applicable | ||||||
| a–to your supervisor |
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| b–to the colleagues with whom you work most closely |
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| c–to your subordinates |
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| d–to management or senior management |
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| e–to Francophone members of the public |
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| f–to Anglophone members of the public |
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| B – Ideally, you would prefer to write in your first official language… | ||||||||
| More often | Less often | No change | Not applicable | |||||
| a–to your supervisor |
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| b–to the colleagues with whom |
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| c–to management or senior |
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19. How often would you say you consider recipients’ first official language when addressing messages (e.g. e-mail messages) to a group of employees?
Never
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
20. Performance Appraisal
A – Were you asked in which official language you would prefer receiving your performance appraisal?
Yes
Non→ Jump to question 21.
B – If you answered “yes” to Q20A, in which language did you indicate you would like your performance appraisals completed?
English
French
C – Was your choice respected?
Yes
No
D – If you answered “no” to Q20C, why do you feel your choice wasn’t respected?
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
21. The following questions relate to the availability of work tools and internal services in both official languages:
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| Sometimes | Often | Always | I don't know | |||||
| a–Training and development courses relating to my duties are available: | ||||||||||
| in English |
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| in French |
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| b–Work instruments (manuals, reference documents, guidelines) are available: | ||||||||||
| in English |
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| in French |
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| c–E-mails for general distribution are available: | ||||||||||
| in English |
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| in French |
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| d–Internal services (i.e. pay and benefits services, career counselling) are available: | ||||||||||
| in English |
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| in French |
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| e–Computer services (help desks) are available: | ||||||||||
| in English |
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| in French |
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22. Has the organization made known to personnel the government policies and directives that were developed to ensure an equitable use of both official languages at work?
Yes
Not completely
Not at all
I don't know
23. The following statements pertain to the use of English and French in your present workplace. Using the scale provided, please indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the following statements.
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| Neither agree nor disagree |
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| a–I am satisfied with the use of English in my workplace |
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| b–I am satisfied with the use of French in my workplace |
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| c–I feel that there are more impediments to the use of English than to the use of French in my workplace |
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| d–I feel that there are more impediments to the use of French than to the use of English in my workplace |
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PART 3
24. Please indicate to what extent you feel the following organizational obstacles render difficult the use of your preferred official language in your present place of work. If you have not faced a certain obstacle in your present place of work, please check the “not applicable” box.
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Is not an obstacle | Constitute a minor obstacle | Constitute a major obstacle | Not applicable | |||||
| a–Work instruments (manuals, guidelines, software, etc.) initially available in English only |
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| b–Work instruments (manuals, guidelines, software, etc.) initially available in French only |
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| c–Discussions, mostly in one language, at meetings attended by both Anglophones and Francophones |
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| d–Bilingual discussions at meetings |
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| e–Training and professional development not provided as frequently in one official language as in the other |
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| f–Training and professional development not of comparable quality in one official language as in the other |
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| g–E-mail messages between Anglophones and Francophones exchanged primarily in one language only |
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| h–Not enough people who can at least read and understand their second official language |
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| i–Supervisors not having a sufficient knowledge of their second official language |
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| j– Too many unilingual individuals holding positions of authority |
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| k–Management insisting that the work be conducted in one language rather than another |
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| l–The necessity to distribute documents in the official language of the majority in order to receive comments from colleagues |
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| m–English is considered more acceptable than French within my organization |
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| n–French is considered more acceptable than English within my organization |
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25. Among the statements above, indicate the three that you consider to be the greatest impediments to the use of both official languages in your PRESENT workplace. (Only indicate the letter corresponding to the statement)
_______ the greatest impediment
_______ the second-greatest impediment
_______ the third-greatest impediment
26. Please indicate whether you agree or disagree with the following statements.
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| Agree | Disagree | ||||
| a– I am used to working in English |
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| b– I am used to working in Frenchs |
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| c–I have little confidence in the work that I do in English |
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| d– I have little confidence in the work that I do in French |
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| e–I prefer to use my supervisor’s language |
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| f–I prefer to work in French because I want to receive due recognition for my work |
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| g–I prefer to work in English because I want to receive due recognition for my work |
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| h–I am not familiar with my rights regarding language of work |
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| i–I am not comfortable using English in my place of workl |
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| j– I am not comfortable using French in my place of work |
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27. Among the statements above, indicate, in order of importance, the statements that you consider to be the greatest impediments to the use of your preferred official language in your PRESENT place of work. (Only indicate the letter corresponding to the statement)
_______ the greatest impediment
_______ the second-greatest impediment
_______ the third-greatest impediment
28. Please describe briefly any additional obstacles you may face in your present workplace.
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PART 4
This part deals with potential SOLUTIONS for fostering greater use of both official languages as languages of work.
29. Using the scale provided, please indicate how effective you feel each of the following proposed statements would be. Also indicate whether or not each of the following solutions has already been implemented in your organization.
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| A – How effective? | B – Implementation in your organization? | ||||||||||||||||
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| Not at all effective |
Slightly effective | Moderately effective |
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Yes | No | |||||||||||
| a– Widely used work instruments should be available and provided simultaneously in both official languages |
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| b– Supervisors and managers should encourage staff to write documents, including e-mail messages, in their first official language |
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| c– Those chairing meetings attended by both Anglophones and Francophones should always facilitate the use by everyone of their first official language |
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| d– All employees should be able to read in and to understand their second official language so that everyone can speak and be understood in his or her first official language |
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| e– All senior managers should be proficient in both official languages |
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| f– Managers and supervisors should receive training that would provide them with management techniques for actively promoting the use of both official languages in the workplace | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
| g– Language training should be available to everyone | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
| h– Supervisors should regularly remind subordinates that they may communicate with him/her (in writing | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
| i– Employees’ rights regarding language of work should be clearly explained to them | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
| j– Senior management should issue regular reminders to managers and supervisors about the importance of promoting a climate conducive to the use of both official languages | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
| k– Employees should be offered refresher courses in their first official language | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
| l– All positions with supervisory functions should be staffed by bilingual personnel | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
| m– Courses on reading and oral comprehension skills in their second official language should be made available to everyone | | | | | | | | |||||||||||
30. Please indicate the three proposed solutions above which you consider to be the most effective means of promoting greater use of both official languages as languages of work in your workplace. (Only indicate the letter corresponding to the statement)
_______ the most effective solution
_______ the second-most-effective solution
_______ the third-most-effective solution
PART 5
In this part, we are seeking your views on the federal government’s policy of official bilingualism.
31. Using the scale provided, indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the following statements.
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| Neither agree nor disagree | Agree somewhat |
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| a–Linguistic duality constitutes an asset for Canadian society as a whole |
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| b–Using both official languages in the workplace is inefficient |
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| c–I am proud to be able to use my first official language as a language of work |
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| d–I am proud to be able to use my second official language as a language of work |
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| e–There are too many positions requiring knowledge of both official languages within my organization |
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| f– The policy of bilingualism will never be fully respected as it is too demanding |
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| g–Official bilingualism has contributed to equality of opportunity for Anglophone and Francophone employees |
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| h–Being able to communicate in both official languages is an asset |
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| i–In bilingual regions, all employees should be allowed to work in the official language of their choice |
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| j–The policy of bilingualism with regard to language of work has damaged relations between Anglophone and Francophone employees |
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| k–By using both languages, one shows respect for othere |
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| l–In my organization, there is an insufficient number of positions requiring knowledge of both official languages to allow employees to work in the official language of their choice |
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| m–The federal government should increase its efforts to make the Canadian population more bilingual |
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| n–It is important to be able to serve the public in both official languages |
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PART 6
In this section, we are seeking to evaluate overall job satisfaction. This section also allows you to add personal comments about the implementation of the official languages program.
32. Overall job satisfaction. Using the scale provided, indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each of the following statements.
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| Neither agree nor disagree | Agree somewhat | Totally agree | ||||||
| a–My working conditions are excellent |
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| b–I am satisfied with the type of work I do |
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| c–Up to now, I got the important things I wanted out of my work |
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| d–If I could change anything I wanted at work, I would change almost nothin |
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| e–Working in English contributes positively to my job satisfactionl |
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| f–Working in French contributes positively to my job satisfaction |
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33. Please feel free to describe any best practices you have encountered in the use of both official languages, in your present or previous place of work.
34. Please add any comments or observations about the use of the official languages in your workplace.
Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire.
