Air Canada CEO apologizes for English-only video: ‘Despite many lessons … I am still unable to express myself adequately in French’

Source: Immediate-Link490

39 Comments

  1. So if I’m getting this straight, Air Canada is legally required to communicate in French, but there’s no requirement for the CEO to actually be bilingual. And the government doesn’t decide who the CEO is anymore. This seems like a silly thing to rag on him about then.

  2. Moist_diarrhea173 on

    This is a nothingburger issue. Feels like the media and LPC are trumping this up like it’s a huge scandal so they can avoid criticism for 100k jobs lost so far this year. 

  3. Agoraphobicy on

    I’ve tried without success for many years to learn languages but I’ve just learned it’s not something I’m able to do easily. I get he’s in a position he probably should know it but I can actually believe that he’s sincere in this.

  4. Fireside_Cat on

    Don’t care, it’s not a job requirement. Air Canada needs to provide bilingual services to its customers.

    As for the message, I have no idea what communication was done between the company and the families of the pilots so I have no opinion on something that I don’t have the facts about. I am not stupid enough to believe the CEO’s video was the only interaction.

  5. Savings_Macaroon7892 on

    Someone on his staff could’ve written a phonetic introduction. You do a sentence or two in French then you switch to English then you close with another phonetic sentence or two in French. How do these people even get hired? Why is our country run by idiots? This shit is not that hard.

  6. This is a large nothing burger, Capitalism runs our politics- Is he gonna spend the money and time to learn a language he knows he can get away without? Nope- Let’s focus on real issues please- Like healthcare and education.

  7. PriorityOk8214 on

    Le problème c’est aussi qu’il ne semble pas comprendre pourquoi c’est un problème.

    La majorité des anglophones non plus, d’ailleurs.

  8. I mean.. I’m going to assume the CEO of a billion dollar business as complex as aircan isn’t a blithering idiot. So…. he didn’t take any lessons. Period. He couldn’t care any less -at all- about French.

    “The lessons didn’t work” can’t explain inability to read (poorly) a teleprompter.

  9. liberalindianguy on

    Let me get this straight – two pilots tragically lost their lives in a crash, but people are upset because the CEO’s message failed to include French.

  10. Outrageous_Order_197 on

    Who cares? Air canada was privatized in the late 80’s. They can chose whoever they want as ceo

  11. dollarsandcents101 on

    There’s many other things the government should complain about this guy for. Like when he said he assumed government intervention would end the Air Canada strike. Oh wait… that did happen…

  12. Does the CEO of South Africa’s flag carrier speak all of their official languages, or even the president? Doubtful. This country panders to such a small minority to the point where they get preferential treatment.

  13. I think this issue is just an excuse to drag him down from the position of CEO. He must have mess with too many people.

    The whole issue about Air Canada somehow made Transport Canada to drop the regulation about fines for delaying resolving complains may be something worth looking into.

  14. _PERFECT_NAME on

    This is a very Canadian controversy. Also takes away from the 2 lives needlessly lost.

  15. stephenelias1970 on

    annnnnnd this is why businesses don’t take Quebec seriously, and don’t want to open offices in Montreal.

  16. DevLeCanadien23 on

    This story being as big as it is, is why Canada is a joke. Do you know how many more serious problems we have in this country?

  17. Easy-Membership3330 on

    When can we start being more concerned about executives ability to ensure we have adequate ATC here to mitigate more fatalities? Sure, we can have both concern for language and respect for culture, but that seems to be the loudest headline right now.

  18. Commercial_Guitar_19 on

    There are so many other things CEOs should be apologizing for before not speaking French.

  19. Fechez la vache! I fart in your general direction! Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!

  20. He wasn’t being expected to have a debate in French and discuss complicated topics; he was expected to deliver a prepared statement in French. That’s something even a person who struggles with French can do, as long as it’s expect that there will be mistakes in pronunciation.

  21. Saskatchewaner on

    Who cares? Quebec only. Two pilots died and that’s what we care about? I don’t give a ffffff about this.

  22. If he was hired knowing he wasn’t bilingual, this isn’t his fault. Cut this guy some slack.

    If they really wanted him to know French, they would’ve helped him learn it. It shouldn’t be assumed he’d learn it himself just because he lived in Montreal for 15 or whatever years lmao. You can get away living in Montreal by just knowing English.

  23. This whole story is silly. It’s completely overblowing the fact that people died due to a completely preventable accident. It has nothing to do with language.

    Can we move on from this issue and actually fix air travel issues and mourn the loss of Canadians?

  24. satanisoverseas on

    Seriously? This is how ppl get fired up? If he doesn’t speak French, then so what? 3/4 of Canadians don’t speak French and humanity gets by.

  25. The radio mentioned it was disrespectful to the french speaking pilot for not speaking french. What if it is was chinese-canadian that died whom only know english and chinese. We expect the CEO to speak in chinese as well?

  26. Murky_Foundation_911 on

    I personally hate when our political reps talk in English and French, but all disjointed. It really is jarring and makes it hard to follow the messaging.

    It’s just a Canadianism I wish would go away

  27. SixtyFivePercenter on

    Will Carney apologize for his constituency office only having the automated phone welcome message only in English (until yesterday after it was called out on X)?

  28. Fabulous_Strength_54 on

    A nice f-u to Quebec would be to move AC’s head office to another province

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