1.1 This directive comes into effect on November 19, 2012. It replaces the Directive on the Linguistic Identification of Positions or Functions and the Directive on the Staffing of Bilingual Positions.
1.2 Appendix 2 comes into effect on September 1, 2021. New
2.1 This directive applies to institutions subject to Parts IV, V, VI, and section 91 of the Official Languages Act, except for the Senate, the House of Commons, the Library of Parliament, the office of the Senate Ethics Officer, and the office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.
2.2 Appendix 1 (Linguistic Identification of Positions) applies to all institutions mentioned above. It also contains certain requirements that apply only to institutions listed in Schedules I or IV of the Financial Administration Act (FAA).
2.3 Appendix 2 (Staffing Rules) applies only to institutions that are subject to the Public Service Employment Act (PSEA).
3.1 This directive supports the Policy on Official Languages by setting out requirements related to the linguistic identification of a position, the staffing of bilingual positions, and the equitable participation of English-speaking and French-speaking Canadians in federal institutions.
3.2 The Official Languages Act (OLA) provides that English and French are the languages of work in institutions and that employees have the right to use either official language in accordance with Part V of the OLA.
3.3 The languages of work used in institutions are identified by geographic region. English and French are the languages of work in bilingual regions. In unilingual regions, the language of work is generally the one that predominates in the province or territory.
3.4 The languages used for communications with and services to members of the public are identified for each office of an institution. In designated offices, members of the public have the right to choose between English and French.
3.5 Leadership in the area of official languages calls on all managers in institutions:
3.6 This directive is issued by the Treasury Board pursuant to its authority under section 46 of the OLA.
3.7 This directive must be read in conjunction with Parts IV, V, VI and Section 91 of the OLA, the Policy on Official Languages and related instruments such as:
See Appendix 4 of this directive.
To establish, across institutions, sound and consistent practices and procedures for Deputy heads or their delegates, and Heads of Human Resources for the following:
Appropriate measures are in place to ensure that:
Managers and supervisors are responsible for:
Deputy heads or their delegates are responsible for:
Managers are responsible for the following:
Managers are responsible for the following:
Deputy heads or delegated managers are responsible for:
Human Resources Advisors are responsible for:
Heads of Human Resources are responsible for:
The consequences for non-compliance with this Directive are set out in the respective section of the Policy on Official Languages.
The roles and responsibilities related to this Directive are set out in the respective section of the Policy on Official Languages.
Legislation
Treasury Board Policy Instruments
Other publications
For questions regarding this policy, please contact the Person responsible for official languages or TBS Public Enquiries.
Managers in institutions listed at schedules I or IV of the Financial Administration Act (FAA) identify the language requirements of positions as follows:
If a position is identified bilingual, managers establish the level of proficiency required in the second official language.
The linguistic profile reflects the functions and duties the incumbent will be required to perform in their second official language.
Managers in institutions listed at schedules I or IV of the FAA apply the Qualification Standards in Relation to Official Languages. The language proficiency levels of positions involving service to the public or to employees, as well as supervision of employees, are identified at the BBB level or higher.
(Assistant Deputy Minister level) Throughout Canada, positions at the assistant deputy minister level or equivalent are designated bilingual requiring a superior level of proficiency in the second official language. A superior level for institutions listed in schedules I or IV of the FAA is CBC.
(Other executive positions) Other executive positions are designated bilingual requiring a superior level of proficiency in the second official language so that incumbents in bilingual regions can carry out their duties and fulfil their obligation to create a workplace that is conducive to the use of English and French, if the position includes one or more of the following:
A superior level for institutions listed in schedules I or IV of the FAA is at least CBC.
Deputy heads or their delegates are responsible for ensuring the following:
(Executives) Imperative staffing is obligatory in the following circumstances:
(Persons with disabilities) When administrative measures can be put in place, imperative staffing is not mandatory for EX-02 to EX-05 positions or their equivalent when a candidate has received an exclusion for a medical reason confirming a long-term or recurring physical, mental or learning impairment that prevents them from attaining, through language training, including with accommodation, the required second official language proficiency. Measures must be taken to ensure the language requirements of the position are fulfilled.
(External appointments) Imperative staffing is not mandatory in the case of external appointment processes ("open to the public") for indeterminate positions. Such appointments may be made either imperatively or non-imperatively.
(Justification) Managers staffing bilingual positions non-imperatively provide the reasons and a justification in writing.They explain the measures taken to ensure that the position’s bilingual functions are carried out until such time as the incumbent meets the position’s language requirements.
(Non-imperative Staffing) The provisions of the Public Service Official Languages Exclusion Approval Order as well as the Public Service Official Languages Appointment Regulations are applied when a non-imperative staffing process is used.
(Reclassification) The language requirements of a position are reviewed when it is reclassified. Reclassifications are considered appointments and are subject to the PSEA.
(Modifications of language requirements or linguistic profiles) Whenever the language requirements or the linguistic profile of a position are modified, the incumbent is informed in writing within ten working days following the date of the modification. If the incumbent does not meet the position’s new language requirements or its linguistic profile, the incumbent may remain in the position without having to meet the new requirements or the linguistic profile. If the position becomes bilingual or its linguistic profile is raised, the institution provides language training to the employee. The employee is strongly encouraged to take the training. The institution must take administrative measures to have the functions of the position carried out in both official languages.
The provisions of the preceding paragraph do not apply in the case of the selection of employees for retention pursuant to section 21 of the Public Service Employment Regulations.
(Non-imperative Deployments) Deputy heads or their delegates are responsible for managing non-imperative deployments. The same provisions governing a non-imperative appointment are applied to deployments. The employee has to meet the language requirements of the position within the exclusion period, even if he or she is deployed on a non-imperative basis to another bilingual position with the same or lower linguistic profile. If the employee is deployed to a position with a higher linguistic profile, a new exclusion period begins on the date of the deployment.
Some possible recruitment measures are the following:
Certain practices are not acceptable:
To adapt teaching methods and other teaching approaches, as well as scheduling, duration of training, training-related evaluation processes, premises and materials, to the needs of persons with disabilities or learning disabilities that can impede the learning of a second official language. See the Policy on the Duty to Accommodate Persons with Disabilities in the Federal Public Service.
This applies when the positions are linguistically indispensable because the provision of services depends on direct spoken or written communication by persons and the quality or availability of service in either of the official languages would be inadequate without this capacity. Imperative staffing should be used in the following circumstances (not an exhaustive list):
The list of Bilingual Regions of Canada for Language-of-Work Purposes is available on the TBS Web site.
Common service organizations are listed in Appendix B of the Common Services Policy.
The Privy Council Office, the Department of Finance and Shared Services Canada are also central agencies for the purposes of this policy instrument.
An organizational culture in which employees are systematically encouraged to use the official language of their choice in the workplace.
During the initial period:
The following situations may arise, depending on the language profile of the position to which the person is deployed:
This term is equivalent to “deputy minister”, “chief executive officer” and other titles denoting this level of responsibility.
An office is designated bilingual for communications with and services to the members of the public if it meets criteria set out in the OLA or in the Regulations such as (not an exhaustive list):
A list of offices designated bilingual is available in Burolis.
The following are examples of staffing situations in which a candidate who does not meet the language requirements may be considered:
Staffing procedure for a bilingual position where only applicants who meet all the position's qualifications, including language skills, at the time of appointment can be appointed.
Institution means:
Staffing procedure for a bilingual position allowing the consideration of applicants who meet all essential qualifications except for the requisite language skills. The Public Service Official Languages Exclusion Approval Order and the Public Service Official Languages Appointment Regulations specify the circumstances in which non-imperative staffing is permitted.
In bilingual regions, personal and central services are offered to all employees in the official language of their choice. These services are those that affect the employee on a personal level (their health and well-being, personal development, their career) or that are essential for the employee to perform their duties. Some examples:
Personal services:
Central services:
The term “position” includes positions or functions.
Any person, group of persons (professional associations or others) or organization or company (other than a Crown corporation) in Canada or abroad, any representative of another level of government communicating with or receiving a service from an institution, excluding officers and employees of institutions subject to the OLA when carrying out their duties.
For example, the following work tools or instruments are available in both official languages in bilingual regions:
Note that this list is not exhaustive. The institution is responsible for deciding on a case-by-case basis whether work instruments meet the definition of "regularly and widely used."
With regard to computer systems, those provided to employees as information sources or work tools must allow navigation and access to information in either official language; the information must also be available in the official language of the user's choice.
Any region that is not in the list of bilingual regions.