Publications
Portrait of Official Language Minorities in Canada - Anglophones in Quebec
- 89-642-X
- Main page
- Introduction
- Section 1 Definitions of Quebec English-speaking population
- Section 2 Evolution of the population by mother tongue and first official language spoken
- Section 3 Factors influencing the evolution of the population with English as a mother tongue
- Section 4 A few key sectors for the vitality of official-language minority communities
- Section 5 Subjective vitality
- Conclusion
- References
- Tables, charts and maps
- Appendix
- More information
- PDF version
- Other issues in this series
Section 4 A few key sectors for the vitality of official-language minority communities
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4.1 Health
4.2 Justice
4.3 Education
4.4 Media, arts and culture
4.5 Community life
4.6 Employment and income characteristics
The Roadmap for Canada's Linguistic Duality 2008-2013 calls for investing in five key sectors: health, justice, arts and culture, economic development and immigration. This section will present statistics on four of these five key sectors identified in the Roadmap. Also, the Roadmap includes financial support for education in the minority language. This sector was identified as being of great importance to the future of official-language minorities in Canada,1 and therefore a section will be devoted to it.
Drawing on data from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-language Minorities (SVOLM) and Census, we will provide general information on the presence of English and the situation of Anglophones in each of these sectors.
4.1 Health
A common language between patients and health care professionals is one of the key elements of access to health care services and the effectiveness of the services provided. Language barriers can mean that some members of minority Anglophone communities are less well served by health care services. With this in mind, it is important to examine the situation of Quebec's Anglophone communities regarding various aspects of access to health care services.
Excluding Anglophones that do not know French, the SVOLM data shows that 78% of Anglo Quebecers consider it "very important" or "important" for them to obtain health care services in English.2
In the 2006 Census, 86% of doctors working in Quebec, or 9,025, reported being able to conduct a conversation in English, while 51% reported using English at least on a regular basis3 in their work.4 For nurses, the number was 61,320 in 2006, and the proportions were 45% and 37% respectively.
The proportion of health care professionals who can conduct a conversation in English and, to a lesser extent, the proportion of those who use that language at least on a regular basis at work, is much higher than the relative share of Anglophones (13.4%) in Quebec. On this subject, the SVOLM results show that the majority of Anglophones in Quebec report using English when consulting the different health care professionals about whom information was collected in the SVOLM, namely regular medical doctors, nurses, and professionals in other places where health care services are provided. However, the proportions vary from one region to another. Also, consultations of the telephone health line (Info-Santé) professionals take place more often in French: province-wide, only 43% of Anglophones in Quebec use English with these professionals. Table 4.1 shows the languages used with health care professionals.
As the table shows, it is with one's family doctor that the use of English is most prevalent, especially in the Montréal region, while in interactions with other health care professionals, English is used (either alone or with French) in proportions of 65% with nurses, approximately 50% when using the telephone health line (Info-Santé) and 61% in other places where care is provided. The use of English is lowest in Québec and surrounding area, a region where nearly three Anglophones in ten report being more at ease in French than in English. However, Anglophones report using French with various health care professionals in several regions of Quebec. But because the great majority of the province's Anglophones live in Montréal, the situation there warrants special attention. As may be seen in the table, while more than 80% of Anglophones use English there (either alone or with another language) with their family doctor, this proportion falls to 69% with nurses, 55% when using the Info-Santé line and 63% in interactions with other health care professionals.
Health care professionals' lack of knowledge of English, as perceived by respondents, is the main reason cited by Anglophones to explain why they are not served in that language during their visits/consultations.
Overall, the results of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) and the census clearly show that the proportion of Anglophones in a municipality of residence, the availability of professionals with knowledge of English and the main language of those requesting service are three important factors that affect the extent of the use of one language or the other with health care professionals.
If the Outaouais and Montréal regions stand out from the other regions of Quebec, this is mainly due to the proportionally larger numbers of Anglophones who live there. Thus, as described in the section on use of languages in the public sphere, the greater the proportion of Anglophones in a given region, the more extensive the presence of English in the public sphere and consequently, the greater the opportunities for using it in daily activities.
The presence of English-speaking professionals as well as professionals able to conduct a conversation in the minority language is not only likely to increase the accessibility of health care services in that language, but it can also be conducive to a stronger presence and more widespread use of that language in this key sector of the public sphere.
According to statistics from the 2006 Census, the Outaouais, Montréal and Estrie and South of Quebec regions have the highest proportions of doctors (97%, 90% and 90% respectively) who are able to conduct a conversation in English. For nurses, the corresponding proportions are 60%, 61% and 49% respectively.
4.2 Justice
An examination of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities results concerning the justice field also sheds light on the extent to which English is present in institutions that ensure its use in the public sphere and consequently bolster its status. By measuring access to professionals who are English-speaking or those who are able to converse in English in this field, it is possible to document a phenomenon perceived as being very important by Anglo Quebecers.
In Quebec, the SVOLM results show that access to these services in English appears to be valued by Anglophones, in that 84% feel that if they had to use the services of a lawyer, it would be "very important" or "important" for the lawyer to be able to speak English. Also, approximately three out of four English-speaking adults reported that they would feel at ease speaking English if they were dealing with the police.
It should be noted that interactions with the justice system and its representatives, especially lawyers and the police, are not widespread in the population. Of Quebec's 773,000 Anglophone adults, 30% reported that they had used the services of a lawyer in the previous two years, while 38% of Anglophones had dealt with the police, either to obtain services or because of an offence. Of those Anglophones, 75% reported having contact with the municipal police, 21% with the provincial police and less than 0.5% (7,700 persons) with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
Because the language barrier can hinder access to justice, the Canadian government has made it a priority to train professionals who can provide service in the minority official language. According to the 2006 Census, Quebec had 16,225 lawyers able to conduct a conversation in English, representing almost 85% of all lawyers in the province. As for Quebec police officers, 63% reported that they were able to conduct a conversation in English. Of course, on this score, regional differences are observed, with the Outaouais and Montréal regions having the largest proportions of lawyers (90% in both regions) and police officers (82% and 73% respectively) able to conduct a conversation in English.
In addition to these statistics on availability or the potential pool of justice system professionals who are able to use English when interacting with Anglophones in Quebec, tables 4.2.1 and 4.2.2 show these professionals' knowledge of English and their use of that language in their work.
Table 4.2.2 Knowledge and use of the minority language by lawyers, Quebec and regions, 2006
In the 2006 Census, more than 60% of Quebec lawyers reported using English at least on a regular basis in their work. This proportion ranges between 23% and 36% in the regions with small proportions of Anglophones, namely Québec and surrounding area, the East of Quebec and the Rest of Quebec. Among police officers this proportion stands at 51%. In addition, in each region of Quebec, the rate of use of English at work is lower than the proportion of police officers who are able to conduct a conversation in English.5
It is worth noting that according to census data, the number of lawyers and police officers who use English in their work in Quebec is much greater than the number of Anglophone lawyers and police officers. Thus, while nearly 12,000 lawyers reported using English at least on a regular basis at work, 2,500 lawyers have this language as their first official language spoken or 13% of lawyers in the province, a proportion equal to the weight of the English FOLS population.
While the number of police officers who report using English at work is much higher than the number of Anglophone police officers, the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) results show that interactions of Anglophones in Quebec with the municipal police and the provincial police6 are generally in French (see charts 4.2.1 to 4.2.2). Thus, almost one-third (32%) of Anglophones used only or mainly English in their interactions with the municipal police and nearly one-quarter (23%) with the provincial police. Anglophones in the Outaouais region stand out from those in other regions by their more frequent use of English with police: more than 40% of them used only or mainly English with the municipal police (44%) and the provincial police (45%). In the Montréal region, the corresponding proportions are 33% and 17% respectively.
As for the use of English with lawyers, the SVOLM results show that 61% of Anglophones in Quebec use it predominantly (see chart 4.2.3). In all regions of the province, the use of English predominates in interactions with lawyers, except in the Québec and surrounding area region and the Rest of Quebec. Although French is nevertheless present in a sizable proportion of cases, the widespread use of English with lawyers reflects the fact that the use of a lawyer's services generally falls into the category of private services and involves a personal choice as to the language of the service provider. This is quite a different situation from those involving interactions with police services, which come under public administration.
Chart 4.2.3 Proportion of Anglophones by language used with lawyer, Quebec and regions, 2006
4.3 Education
4.3.1 Children
The problem of access to schooling in English for Quebec's Anglophone minority is quite different from that faced by Francophones living in a minority situation outside Quebec. For the latter, management of school systems and access to schools in the minority language are relatively recent phenomena, but in the case of Quebec's Anglophones, management of English-language schools by Anglophones and access to such schools are a much older phenomenon.
Thus, well before Confederation in 1867, Quebec's English-speaking community was headed by powerful and very influential elite (Rudin 1985: 223). Soon after Quebec's entry into Confederation, the first education act, enacted in 1869, clearly distinguished the Catholic and Protestant sectors and recognized their autonomy by creating two provincial denominational boards.
From 1875 to 1964, the year when the Quebec Ministry of Education was created, the Quebec system of denominational schools was run by two distinct denominational committees, each responsible for its respective education system. Accordingly, for educational purposes, Quebecers, regardless of their mother tongue, were divided into two groups: Catholics and Protestants. During this period, the quality and full autonomy of the Protestant school system were assured owing to the economic strength of its members. At the time, residential, commercial and industrial property taxes levied by Protestant school boards were entirely used to finance Protestant schools, and they gave the Protestant school sector—especially in the Montréal area—a superior status within the Quebec education system (Rudin 1985, Martel 1991).
During the 20th century, the Quebec education system faced particular difficulties in that it had to accommodate the various religious and language groups that immigrated to Quebec. Since a number of those groups integrated into the English-speaking community, the problems faced by the Quebec education system were to reflect the changes occurring in the composition of Quebec's English-speaking population.
Whereas in 1969, one section of Bill 63 gave parents the right to choose the language of instruction for their children, in 1974, Bill 22 made French the official language of Quebec and restricted enrolment in English schools to children who already had sufficient knowledge of that language. In 1977, the Charter of the French Language or Bill 101 restricted enrolment in English schools to children whose parents had received most of their elementary education in that language in Quebec or whose brother or sister had been educated in that language. In 1984, section 73 of Bill 101 was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Canada because it contravened section 23 of the Charter adopted in 1982 on the right to education in the language of the minority. Bill 101 was then amended to allow Anglophone parents who had received their elementary education in English anywhere in Canada (and not only in Quebec) to send their children to an English school in Quebec; this amendment came to be known as the "Canada Clause."
Since 1998, Quebec's territory has been divided into Anglophone and Francophone school boards rather than Catholic and Protestant boards. According to Quebec government data for 2006, 107,742 students were enrolled in 360 English-language pre-school, elementary or secondary schools under the jurisdiction of Anglophone school boards. In addition, nearly 15,000 students were enrolled in one of the 48 English-language private schools.
As pointed out by Lamarre (2008: 63), Bill 101 has had a considerable impact on the English-language school system in Quebec. While in 1971, nearly 248,000 students were enrolled in an English-language school, by 2006 that number had declined to fewer than 108,000 students. The decrease in enrolment numbers is partly due to the drop in the English-speaking school-age population as a result of a total fertility rate below the replacement level. However, the English-language school system was also profoundly changed by the sizable negative net migration experienced by Quebec's Anglophone population during the 1970s along with the major changes resulting from the application of the Quebec Charter of the French Language in terms of access to English-language schools. In this regard, it is worth noting that according to Quebec government data (2004), almost 90% of first-generation immigrants are now enrolled in French schools. In 1971, 85% were enrolled in English schools (Quebec 1996).
Using the criterion of first official language spoken, data from the Survey on the Vitality of the Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) reveal that of the 191,380 children whose parents were Anglophones and who were enrolled in school at the time of the survey, approximately 52% were attending an English-language elementary or secondary school, including 22% in a French immersion program (chart 4.3.1-a). Counting only children with at least one parent who had English as a mother tongue, this proportion reaches 58% (chart 4.3.1-b), whereas when the focus is on children with at least one parent who received part or all of his or her elementary education in English in Canada, the proportion is 65% (chart 4.3.1-c). In light of the information presented above, it is clear that the language of the school attended by young Anglophones depends on several factors, one of the most important being the restrictions imposed by Quebec language legislation. Added to this is the sizable proportion of French-English exogamous unions as well as the desire of Anglophone parents to further their children's learning of both French and English.
The regional variations seen in these charts clearly show how the choice of the language of instruction for children of Anglophone parents is likely influenced by the different regions' particular demolinguistic characteristics. One such characteristic is the proportion or concentration of Anglophones in the municipality of residence, along with the main language of the parents, especially in the case of exogamous couples. These are both important factors in the rate of transmission of English to children and in the choice of the language of instruction. For example, Québec and surrounding area is the region with the lowest proportion of young Anglophones attending English school (25%). By comparison, it is in the Eastern region of the province that attendance of English schools is the highest, approximately 61% (table 4.3.1). When looking at the school enrolment of English-speaking children, a key element is that a large proportion of these children attend a French immersion program in an English school. In the Montréal region, that proportion (26%) is fairly similar to the proportion of children enrolled in the regular program. This is true both where at least one of the parents has English as his or her mother tongue or where that parent's elementary education took place in English in Canada.
Since their inception on the south shore of Montréal in the 1960s, French immersion programs have steadily gained in popularity among English-speaking parents in Quebec (Lamarre 2008: 69). By demanding better French as a second language programs, Quebec's English-speaking parents have brought about a remarkable increase in their children's level of bilingualism.
The growing number of French-English exogamous couples partly explains the fact that many Anglophone parents choose to register their children in a French school. According to data from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 40% of children whose respondent parent had English as his or her mother tongue lived in an English endogamous family. Approximately half of them live in an English-French exogamous family. In addition, of the 32,350 children whose English-mother-tongue parent had a spouse with the same mother tongue, 78% were enrolled in an English school at the time of the survey. Conversely, when the spouse of the English-mother-tongue parent had French as his or her mother tongue, 37% of the children were enrolled in an English school and 61% in a French school. With respect to children whose Anglophone parent had a spouse with an "other" mother tongue, almost two in three attended an English school.
Besides the growth of exogamy, some historical factors shed light on parents' motives in this regard. During the 1970s, as a result of the restrictions on the choice of the language of schooling imposed by Bill 101, Protestant school boards started opening French schools for the immigrant population that could not attend English schools. According to Lamarre (2008: 70), such a change "offered a new option to English-speaking families who could now send their children to French Protestant schools that were under the management of the Anglophone community."
Thus, emerged the phenomenon of rights-holder families voluntarily choosing to send their children to French schools, at least at the elementary level (McGlynn and al. 2008, Laperrière 2006). In addition, while a number of parents chose to register their children in a French immersion program, many others chose to exert pressure to improve the teaching of French as a second language in English schools, particularly with respect to written French. Because of the strong relationship between a high level of bilingualism and good employment opportunities for young Anglophones in Quebec, the idea was to ensure not only that the children of Anglophone parents were orally bilingual, but that their literacy in French was equal to that of native French speakers.
It is mainly at the elementary level that Anglophone parents choose to enroll their children in a French school. Lamarre (2008: 71) observes that "as students move into high school, the preoccupation with obtaining French skills loses ground to the need for good marks in preparation for post-secondary education in English."
On this subject, the SVOLM results confirm that attending an English school appears to be a more widespread choice at the secondary level. These results indicate that there is considerable exposure to French at the pre-school and kindergarten level (53%) and at the elementary level (48% in a French school and 32% in a French immersion program in an English school). In fact, at the elementary level, only 17% of young Anglophones are enrolled in a regular program in English, compared to 38% at the secondary level. This finding applies to all regions of the province, although in the Eastern region, the proportion of young Anglophones enrolled in the regular education program at the elementary level (34%) is fairly similar to the level observed at the secondary level.
4.3.2 Adults
4.3.2.1 Highest level of schooling
The portrait of Anglophone adults in Quebec with regards to schooling bears witness to the historical existence of an economic, social and cultural network of institutions unique among English-speaking Canadians. Well before the beginning of Confederation, Anglophones in Quebec were indeed considered an elite within Canada. Moreover, the advantage Quebec Anglophones in Quebec had over their Francophone counterparts was also the result of historical factors of a political and cultural nature, namely a lower school attendance by Francophones as well as a lesser value put upon education. In fact, it was not until the 1960s, through the societal shift brought about by the Quiet revolution which saw, among others, the creation of the Royal Commission on Teaching in the province (Parent Commission) and the Quebec Ministry of Education, that Francophones' relationship to education was transformed.
To illustrate the phenomenon, we will first examine the results shown in chart 4.3.2.1 that concern the situation observed in 2006. As may be seen, one Anglophone in five (20%) had no certificate, diploma or degree, compared to one Francophone in four (26%). Apart from persons with no certificate, diploma or degree, the gap observed between the two main language groups for persons with no postsecondary diploma or degree is mainly due to the fact that Anglophones are proportionally more likely to have completed at least a high school diploma, while their Francophone counterparts are proportionally more likely to have a trade school or apprenticeship certificate. Statistics on diplomas, certificates or degrees obtained at the postsecondary level also reveal that there is a sizable gap in university degrees or diplomas in favour of Anglophones: almost 25% of the latter have such a degree or diploma, compared to slightly more than 15% of Francophones.
Chart 4.3.2.2 shows that for all age groups, the proportion of Anglophones having no certificate, diploma or degree is lower than the corresponding proportion of Francophones, although the gap is much wider for persons aged 65 and over. Reflecting the weight of historical factors, the proportion of Francophones in this age group who have no diploma or certificate is 48%, compared to 36% for Anglophones. Conversely, within the population for which English is the first official language spoken, a larger proportion have a university certificate, diploma or degree than within the French-speaking population. Among persons aged 25 to 34, the gap between the two groups is 12 percentage points. Note that in this regard, the gap between the two groups is slightly larger than when the mother tongue criterion is used; this difference is mainly attributable to the greater weight of immigration within the English-speaking population and the larger proportion of university graduates in the immigrant population.
However, it is worth noting that when we only take into account persons of this age group that live in the Montréal CMA, the gap between the two language groups shrinks by approximately 5 percentage points and becomes negligible on the Island of Montréal. In the other large urban centres where Anglophones reside, namely in Outaouais and Sherbrooke, there is practically no gap between the two groups as to the proportion of university degree holders. In other words, since the proportion of university graduates is much greater in the large urban centres and a sizable proportion of the Quebec population lives outside these large centres, any analysis of the education gaps between the two groups must take this reality into consideration.
As just noted, an examination of the educational status of young adults must take an important factor into account, namely Anglophones' place of birth. For example, we know that within both the Anglophone and Francophone groups, immigrants are generally more likely to have a university diploma, one reason being that education level is one of the selection criteria for immigrants to Canada. In 2006, among Anglophones aged 25 to 34, 46% of those born outside Canada had a university diploma, compared to 41% of those born in another province (in most cases, Ontario) while 31% of Anglophones born in Quebec had such a diploma (see chart 4.3.2.3). At lower education levels, the corollary of this situation is observed, namely, Anglophones born in Quebec were much more likely than other Anglophones born outside Quebec to have a high school or college diploma as their highest education level.
One of the greatest changes resulting from the profound social transformations and educational reforms of the 1960s is undeniably the entry of large numbers of women into post-secondary educational institutions, especially universities. In 1971, the proportion of women holding a university degree was two to three times smaller than the proportion of men, depending on the age group. In 2006, among Anglophones in Quebec, the data show that for persons aged 65 and over—that is, those who were at least 30 years of age in 1971, the proportion of women holding a university diploma is 11%, compared to 20% for men in this age group (see table 4.3.2.1). By contrast, among 20 to 24 year-olds, the situation is reversed: the proportion holding such a diploma is only 12% for men, whereas it is nearly 20% for women. In short, women under 35 years of age are proportionally more likely to have a university diploma or degree than their male counterparts, while the latter are proportionally more likely to have a lower level of education or to have a vocational or trade school diploma.
The propensity to be highly educated or less educated usually varies depending on whether individuals live in large urban centres or rural areas. For example, universities are generally located in large urban centres, as are the employers who are likely to hire numerous university graduates.
For Anglophones in Quebec, in 2006, the regions of Québec and surrounding area and Montréal had the largest proportions of university graduates, at respectively 28% and 27% (chart 4.3.2.4). The lowest proportions of such graduates were recorded in the East of Quebec, the Estrie and South of Quebec and the "Rest of Quebec" regions, at 7%, 14% and 11% of the population respectively. Conversely, in the East of Quebec and the "Rest of Quebec," large proportions of the Anglophone population had no certificate, diploma or degree, at 43% and 35% respectively. These results reflect differences in the age structure of Anglophone communities in the various regions of Quebec. Whereas approximately 13% of Montréal's Anglophone population is aged 65 and over, the regions of Estrie and South of Quebec, the East of Quebec and the "Rest of the province" posted proportions of 21%, 18% and 15% respectively. Conversely, whereas 15% of Montréal's Anglophone population is aged 25 to 34, the corresponding proportions of adults in this age group in those same three regions are 9%, 10% and 12% respectively.
4.3.2.2 Adults' language of instruction
The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) results show that in Quebec as a whole, 17% of children with at least one English-speaking parent are enrolled in the regular program of an English-language elementary school and 32% in a French immersion program. At the secondary level, the corresponding proportions were respectively 38% and 21%. What about the language of instruction of the adults who responded to the SVOLM? In responses to the various survey questions on the language in which respondents pursued part or all of their education in English, the presence of English varies from one age group to the next and from one education level to the next.
Thus, as table 4.3.2.2 shows, the proportion of adults who did part or all of their education in English is relatively large, and it varies, sometimes substantially, depending on the age group and education level. Accordingly, among those aged 25 and over, the proportion who did their education in English ranges between 52% and 72% for elementary and secondary education, whereas this proportion is lower among youths aged 18 to 24, a direct consequence of the legal requirement for many Anglophones with an "other" mother tongue to attend French school. Going beyond the secondary level, at the pre-university and university levels, there is a marked change in the rate of enrolment in English-language institutions. Whereas 64% of young Anglophones aged 18 to 24 report having done all or part of their elementary education in English, this proportion rises to 85% at the post-secondary pre-university level and nearly 90% for the university level.
4.4 Media, arts and culture
Support for the arts and culture is one of the key elements targeted by the Roadmap for Canada's Linguistic Duality, which recognizes the essential role that the arts and culture play in the development of minority official-language communities.
The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) targets six media for measuring access to cultural products in the minority language: television; the Internet; radio; newspapers; books; and live performances or arts events. These days, the Internet and cable television facilitate access to these media from many countries and in numerous languages, thereby increasing the availability of the various English-language cultural products throughout Canada.
The results of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-language Minorities show that Quebec Anglophones, like their Francophone counterparts, are big consumers of the various media, the most important one being television (see table 4.4.1).
Table 4.4.1 Proportion of Anglophones and Francophones by use of certain media, Quebec, 2006
The data in table 4.4.2 show that for Anglophones, consumption of the different media basically takes place in English, with a majority reporting that it is "only" or "mainly" in that language that they watch television or listen to radio, read books and newspapers and access the Internet. Internet use (86%) and television viewing (82%) are the activities for which the predominance of English is the strongest, while the reading of newspapers only or mainly in English registers the lowest proportion at 67%. Despite the dominance of English in consumption of the various media, it is worth noting that province-wide, 20% of Anglophones listen to the radio in French (exclusively or as often as in English), while this is the case with close to three Anglophones in ten with respect to reading newspapers. In Montréal, the latter proportion is 26%.
Table 4.4.2 Percentage of Anglophones by language used with certain media, Quebec and regions, 2006
With respect to the choice of the language in which media are consumed, the results of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-language Minorities show once again the influence of the Anglophones' region of residence and, consequently, the proportion that the Anglophone population represents within that region. Despite the fact that the concentration of Anglophones within municipalities is higher in the Montréal region than in the Outaouais region, Anglophones living in the latter are as much if not more inclined than those in the other regions to report that their consumption of the various media takes place "only" or "mainly" in English (see table 4.4.2). This phenomenon is mainly due to the proximity of Ontario, particularly the city of Ottawa, where English greatly predominates. Anglophones in the region of Québec and surrounding area and, to a lesser extent, those in the East of Quebec are proportionally less likely to listen to the radio "only" or "mainly" in English than those in the other regions. Because of widespread access to cable television and the Internet, regional disparities are much smaller with respect to the presence of English in the consumption of these media. However, only a small minority of Anglophones in the region of Québec and surrounding area read newspapers in that language, as does at least half of them in ten in the East of Quebec and the "Rest of Quebec."
4.5 Community life
Individuals' involvement in their community and participation in community activities are generally recognized as dimensions of life in society that contribute to the creation and maintenance of social support networks. Also, "[s]ocial capital (broadly defined as participation in social networks) is increasingly being understood as a key component of community development or a key aspect of the 'capacity' of a community to develop."7
The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) data can be used to measure various aspects of Anglophones' community participation. The statistics on participation in volunteer activities, membership in community organizations and informal care giving shedding light on the extent to which Anglophones are involved in local associations and their community.
The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities results show that approximately one-quarter of Quebec's Anglophones participate in one of the activities on which data were collected in that survey. Thus, 22% of adult Anglophones reported belonging to an organization, network or association during the twelve months preceding the survey, while 24% reported volunteering and 26% reported giving unpaid assistance with activities to someone not living in their household.
A number of sociodemographic and economic factors influence community participation, including age, education level, residential environment, socioeconomic status, etc. However, an analysis of these factors goes beyond the objective of this report.
The type of community activities in which Anglophones are involved varies from one region to another. Their level of participation in these activities is roughly the same in all regions of Quebec. However, the language in which these activities take place varies, in particular according to the type of activity and the region. For example, Anglophones' involvement in volunteering or day-to-day social support activities takes place more often in English than in the case of involvement in organizations, networks or associations. Also, except for what is observed in Québec and surrounding area, regional disparities seem smaller for participation in these day-to-day activities than for other community activities.
Note that assistance with day-to-day activities is more often provided to children and other family members (51%) and friends (30%). Furthermore, family and friends seem to rely heavily on the networks of Anglophones in Quebec. Thus, in the event of illness, 18% would turn to their children, while 51% report that they would turn to other family members for support. Also, nearly 15% of Anglophones would turn to community resources, volunteer organizations or public social service institutions for support if they became ill. In general, then, the use of English in social support activities seems to be associated mainly with the private sphere.
The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) reveals that 79% of Anglophones report that it is "very important" or "important" to them that individuals or organizations work on the development of the Anglophone community. Here too there are variations according to the region and the concentration of Anglophones within the municipality of residence. Thus, in the East region, where Anglophones' average index of concentration within their municipality of residence is the highest after that of Montréal Anglophones, the largest proportion of respondents (85%) report that they consider it "very important" or "important" that individuals or organizations work on the development of the Anglophone community. Conversely, that proportion is the lowest in the region of Québec and surrounding area (70%), which has the smallest proportion and the lowest concentration of Anglophones. In the other regions of Quebec, the proportions of those who consider it "very important" or "important" that someone work at developing the community varies little, from 73% to 79%.
Although 79% of Anglophones report that it is "important" or "very important" to them that individuals or organizations work at the development of the Anglophone community, less than 12% of those who belong to organizations, networks or associations do so in order to promote or defend the interests of Anglophones.8 Furthermore, the latter proportion shows almost no variation depending on the concentration or proportion of Anglophones in the municipality of residence or the proportion that they represent there.
4.6 Employment and income characteristics
Thus far, we have examined the size of differences in education level between the main language groups in Quebec. Data from both the census and the SVOLM can be used to examine the extent to which Anglophones in Quebec work in different industrial sectors than Francophones. It is accordingly possible to identify similarities and differences in how the language groups are distributed among the various industrial sectors.
A brief analysis of 2006 Census data reveals that Quebec Anglophones are proportionally more likely than Francophones to work in certain sectors, such as professional, scientific and technical services, administrative and management services, or wholesale trade. These three sectors account for respectively 8.7%, 4.8% and 6.7% of the province's Anglophones, compared to 5.8%, 3.5% and 3.9% of Francophones. Francophones are present in proportionally larger numbers in positions in retail trade (12.4%), health care and social assistance (11.4%), public administration (6.6%), and construction (5.5%). By comparison, these four sectors employ respectively 10.7%, 8.9%, 3.6%, and 3.5% of the province's Anglophones. In the other major industry sectors, the gaps between the two groups are smaller.
A number of studies have focused on the participation and presence of Anglo Quebecers in government institutions, and this is an issue that concerns this community's intellectuals, representatives and leaders.9
Although 3.6% of Anglophone workers and 6.6% of Francophone workers in Quebec work in the public administration sector, what is the Anglophones' relative share within the workforce of this employment sector?
Data from the 2006 Census show that the proportion of Anglo Quebecers employed in the public service (7.0%) is less than their relative weight within all industry sectors combined (13.3%), while for Francophones the reverse is true; they are over-represented (93%) compared to their relative weight in the overall workforce (86.5%).
Statistics on the various public administrations—federal (including defence services), provincial and territorial, and local, municipal and regional—also reveal an under-representation of Anglophones and an over-representation of Francophones within each of these groups, especially within the provincial public service. Thus, in Quebec, the federal public service is comprised of 11.7% Anglophones and 88.2% Francophones. As for Quebec's public service, Anglophones' relative share is only 2.8% while Francophones constitute 97.2% of the workforce. Finally, Anglophones comprise 7.0% of all workers in the local, municipal and regional public administrations, compared to 93.0% for Francophones.
The under-representation of Anglophones in the various levels of government was observed in all regions of Quebec. Moreover, although the Montréal and Outaouais regions have larger proportions of Anglophones working in the public administration sector than other regions of Quebec, these proportions are below this group's relative share within the combined industry sectors in their respective regions. Thus, although Anglophones comprise 22.1% of all workers in the Montréal metropolitan area, their relative share is lower within the different levels of government in that region: federal (15.9%), provincial (4.9%) and municipal (7.2%). Conversely, whereas Francophones comprise 77.5% of the workforce of that region, they account for respectively 84%, 95% and 92.7% of employees in the federal, provincial, and municipal, local and regional governments. Similarly, in the Outaouais region, Anglophones comprise 17.3% of workers in all industrial sectors combined, but they account for respectively 15.5%, 6.7% and 8.7% of the workforce in the federal, provincial, and local or municipal governments.
4.6.1 Distribution within employment sectors by region of residence
In Quebec, the distribution of Anglophones among the different employment sectors varies enormously from one region to another. Thus, it is not surprising that in the Outaouais and in Québec and surrounding area, respectively 18.6% and 11.9% of workers are employed in the public service, compared to 2.5% of Anglophones living in the other regions of the province (see table 4.6.1). Conversely, as the table shows, whereas there are proportionally fewer Anglophones in the Outaouais (5.3%) working in the manufacturing sector, in all other regions the relative proportion of these workers is much higher: for example, 20.3% in the Estrie and South of Quebec region and 14.4% in Montréal. Also, a large proportion (15.8%) of workers are employed in educational services in the region of Québec and surrounding area, more than double the figure for the Outaouais (6.0%) and a slightly larger proportion than in the other regions of Quebec. Finally, retail trade is a sector favoured by Anglophone workers (between 8.0% and 11.0%) in all regions.
4.6.2 Use of English at work by industry sector
Of all Quebec workers aged 15 and over, 40% (1,722,830) report using English "most often" or "on a regular basis" at work. Of the 576,049 Anglophone workers, this proportion reaches nearly 92%, with 74% "most often" and 19% "on a regular basis" (that is, less often than the predominant language).10 Nearly 66% (381,885) of Anglophones report using French "most often" or "on a regular basis" in their work, while almost 35% report "most often", and almost 32% report "on a regular basis."
In all industry sectors, except utilities, most Anglophones in Quebec report using English "most often" at work. This use varies from 61% in public administration to 84% in educational services. Anglophone workers in the management of companies and enterprises sector come a close second as regards the use of English at work, with 82% "most often" and 12% on a "regular basis". However, Anglophone workers in the utilities sector are those with the largest proportion who report using English at least on a regular basis at work, with 49% most often and 29% regularly.
4.6.3 Income differentials
Historically, Anglophones in Canada—especially those of Anglo-Saxon origin—have enjoyed advantages in economic terms (income, education level, occupational structure, etc.).11 Anglophones in Quebec long constituted an elite within English-speaking Canada. Since individuals' income level is highly dependent on their education level, their occupation and the industrial sector in which they work (to name only these factors), it would appear that the substantial changes that Quebec's Anglophone and Francophone communities have undergone over the past forty years have had major effects on their income level.
Quebec society has undergone major transformations—cultural, social, economic and demographic—since the 1960s, and these have led to a major diversification of its population. Anglo Quebecers are no exception to this change, in that the ethnic makeup of this group, which was essentially composed of persons of Anglo-Saxon origin at the beginning of the twentieth century, has seen its population diversify considerably, especially in the past thirty years. In 2006, 37% of the roughly 320,000 immigrants who are a part of Quebec's English-speaking population were born in Europe, compared to 38% who were born in Asia or the Middle East. Among the immigrants who settled in Canada between 2001 and 2006, the corresponding proportions were 19% and 53% respectively.
It is beyond the purpose and scope of this report to analyse the factors that have influenced how income differentials between the language groups have evolved. However, statistics from the 2006 Census indicate that the income gap between Anglophones and Francophones has narrowed over time. On the one hand, the major changes that Quebec society has undergone since the Quiet Revolution have considerably improved the status and socioeconomic position of Francophones within Quebec Society. On the other hand, the departure of many Anglophones from the province during the 1970s, along with the arrival of a growing number of international immigrants, many of them from developing countries, have affected the demographic, ethnic and socioeconomic makeup of this language group.
A contrasted picture emerges when median and mean incomes of Anglophones and Francophones are compared. The 2006 statistics reveal that the mean income of persons with English as their only first official language spoken is $3,080 higher than that of persons with French as their sole FOLS, whereas the median income of Anglophones is $1,806 lower than that of Francophones. The difference is even greater when the data are broken down by sex: $3,900 for males and $2,200 for females (see table 4.6.2).
If the criterion used is mother tongue rather than FOLS, the gap is even wider. The English-mother-tongue population has a mean income $4,760 higher than that of the French-mother-tongue population, while Anglophones' median income is $820 lower than that of Francophones (data not in tables).
These findings suggest that income differences are larger within the Anglophone group than within the Francophone group, with a larger number of Anglophones reporting a high income. And indeed, the 2006 Census data on income show that 4.0% of persons with English as the only first official language spoken earned an income of $100,000 or over compared to 2.3% of those with French as the only FOLS. Among males, the corresponding proportions are 6.4% and 3.7% respectively. On the other hand, 23% of Anglo Quebecers have an annual income under $10,000, compared to 19% of Francophones. When the low-income threshold is used, it emerges that 22% of Anglophones have an income that puts them below the low-income threshold, compared to 16% of Francophones.12 In the Montréal metropolitan area, these proportions are 23% and 19% respectively.
Another finding is that the mean and median incomes of persons with both English and French as first official languages spoken are much lower than those of persons in the other two groups. For the population with a dual FOLS, the lower incomes would seem to be explained by the fact that these people are mainly immigrants. Numerous studies have already shown that despite a higher education level, immigrants have a higher unemployment rate and lower income levels than their Canadian-born counterparts.
In light of the historical context described above, we know that the median and mean incomes of the two language groups are a function of age, with older Anglophones having a higher median and mean income than older Francophones. The statistics shown in chart 4.6.3-a and 4.6.3-b reflect the fact that for both males and females for whom English is the first official language spoken, the median income of those aged 65 and over is higher than that of Francophones: $3,400 for males and $2,500 for females. Among persons aged 25 to 64, the opposite is true, with a gap of between $4,000 and $5,000 depending on the age group. On the other hand, charts 4.6.3-c and 4.6.3-d show that the gaps between the mean incomes of Anglophone and Francophone males are much larger for those aged 65 and over ($14,600 in favour of Anglophones) and those aged 45 to 64 (nearly $7,500 in favour of Anglophones). Lastly, for those aged 25 to 44, the gap between the mean incomes of the two groups is practically non-existent. A similar phenomenon is observed for females, although the income gaps are smaller.
When the analysis is pushed further, using the technique of multivariate statistical analysis, it becomes clear that caution is called for when comparing incomes between the two language groups, because of the many factors that influence these gaps.
In fact, while the results on the population as a whole reveal that the mean incomes of Anglophones are higher than those of Francophones (table 4.6.2), it emerges that certain key factors explain these gaps. Thus, an analysis of the data on the average employment incomes of males in the labour force reveals that Francophones have a higher mean income than their Anglophone counterparts when controlling for age, education level, region of residence, industry sector and immigrant status (results not in table). The income gap is larger if the criterion used is mother tongue ($2,700) rather than first official language spoken ($1,900). For females, the gaps are smaller, at $700 and $300 respectively. In other words, a large part of the gap observed between the mean incomes of Anglophones and Francophones is related to differences in age structure, education level, region of residence, industry sector and immigrant status.
Chart 4.6.3-b Median income for males by age group and first official language spoken, Quebec, 2006
Chart 4.6.3-d Average income for males by age group and first official language spoken, Quebec, 2006
Notes
- Government of Canada's Report on Consultations on Linguistic Duality and Official Languages, February 2008.
- This proportion increases to 87% if we include those who cannot conduct a conversation in English and thus to whom the question was not asked.
- In other words, most often or on a regular basis.
- On this subject, see Table 2.1 of the report entitled "Health Care Professionals and Official-Language Minorities in Canada: 2001 and 2006," by C. Blaser, 2006, Catalogue no. 91-550-X.
- Just as in the case of health care professionals, the use of English by lawyers and police officers depends on various factors, including the proportion of Anglophones in a given community. However, an analysis of these factors would go beyond the scope of this study.
- Because of the very small number of members of the official-language minority who had contact with the RCMP, no conclusions regarding them can be drawn from the data obtained in the Survey on the Vitality of Official-language Minorities.
- Rothwell, Neil and Martin Turcotte (2006). "The Influence of Education on Civic Engagement: Differences Across Canada's Rural-Urban Spectrum," Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin, Vol. 7, no. 1, July, Catalogue no. 21-006-XIE, page 1.
- For Ontario Francophones, the proportion is 32%.
- In particular, see Jedwab (2008, p.16), Government of Quebec (2003) and Scowen (2007).
- Data from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-language Minorities revealed that when respondents report using a language on a regular basis in addition to the one used most often, that use is daily.
- For example, see Porter (1965), Pineo (1977) and Curtis and Scott (1979).
- These figures are for income before tax. For after-tax income, the proportions are 16.5% and 11.4% respectively.
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