Quebec Is "Special"

It sure is:

The Bloc Québécois put forward a motion Tuesday seeking to eliminate the prayer that kicks off the House of Commons daily proceedings.

 

That's alright, Bloc Quebecois. Canadians have no faith in you.

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SNC-Lavalin Inc. says it will pay Quebec nearly $30 million over three years to settle criminal bribery charges stemming from bridge work in Montreal.

The charges against SNC-Lavalin and SNC-Lavalin International related to events that occurred between 1997 and 2004 in connection with the Jacques Cartier Bridge deck rehabilitation project between Montreal and Longueuil.

Negotiations with Quebec's Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) began immediately after charges were filed on Sept. 23.

 

In Quebec, you can buy your way out of a prison sentence. 

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As Quebec’s contentious language law heads closer to adoption, the province’s business community is growing increasingly anxious about what it could mean for their bottom line, with some companies considering leaving entirely.

Known as Bill 96, the legislation would impose tougher language requirements on small businesses and companies in federally regulated industries, such as banking and telecommunications, as well as governments and schools. The bill is expected to pass before the legislature breaks for the summer.

On top of strengthening 1977′s Charter of the French Language – the province’s signature language law usually known as Bill 101 – the legislation would apply to tens of thousands of previously exempt businesses.

If it passes, companies with 25 employees or more would be subject to “francization” – government certification that use of French is generalized in the workplace – down from 50 currently. The bill also assigns new powers to the French-language watchdog and sets tighter language rules for professional orders.

The cost for a roughly 50-employee company would range between $9.5-million and $23.5-million, according to estimates from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. Expenses range from fees for translation and legal services to administrative burdens, such as creating a workplace assessment to ensure French permeates all corners of the company.

An internal or public complaint could trigger an investigation from the provincial Office québécois de la langue française. The watchdog can also demand on its own initiative that a business between 25 and 100 workers form a francization committee, another expense for smaller companies.

Other provisions beef up existing protections of the charter.

One clause bars employers from demanding proficiency in a language other than French unless they can show the job demands it and that all reasonable avenues were explored to steer clear of the requirement. Currently, requiring another language as condition of employment is allowed only if “the nature of the duties requires such knowledge,” Bill 101 states.

The high thresholds risk driving head offices from Quebec and hampering the province’s export economy, trade associations say.