OFFICIAL LANGUAGES |
Marchessault v. Canada Post Corp.
A-688-02
2003 FCA 436, Evans J.A.
20/11/03
5 pp.
Classification of postmaster position in Coderre, Saskatchewan as bilingual imperative challenged--Every federal institution has duty to ensure service to public in either official language at any of its offices, "where there is significant demand for . . . services from that office . . . in that language": Official Languages Act (Act), s. 22(b)--Basis for determining existence of "significant demand"--Applications Judge correct in holding Regulations did not apply, as only came into effect on December 16, 1992--Position of postmaster advertised on December 1, 1992, and therefore decision to classify position as "bilingual-imperative" must have been made on or before December 1--Before Regulations came into effect, federal institutions established their own criteria for establishing "significant demand" (minority language population of 500 or 10% of total population)--Criteria met herein--Application for remedy under Act, s. 77 sui generis proceeding in which Court asked to determine whether conduct subject of complaint to Commissioner breached Act--Thus, subject of application Canada Post's classification, not Commissioner's dismissal of complaint--Appeal dismissed--Official Languages Act, R.S.C., 1985 (4th Supp.), c. 31, ss. 22(b), 77.