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Do you have questions about corporate francization? Would you like to offer French courses to your employees? With Global Linga, find out how to apply for language classes and obtain financial assistance from the government.

In Quebec, it's important to ensure that your employees are able to speak French, even in an international business context. As such, the Charter of the French Language ensures that French remains the principal language of daily use, whether at work, in schools or businesses.

La Charte de la langue française

Adopted by Quebec's National Assembly in 1977, the Charter of the French Language (La Charte de la langue française) is a law making French the language of government, education, commerce and business, as well as the normal and usual language of work.

To ensure that the implementation of the French language is at the heart of Quebec companies, and to comply with this law, these companies must take certain steps. Law 96 stipulates that any company employing 25 people or more for a period of 6 months must register with the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) within 6 months of the end of that period.

If the OQLF considers that the use of French isn’t present enough within the company, the latter is required to set up a francisation committee. Its mission? Establish a francisation program, which must be forwarded to the OQLF within 3 months of receipt of the OQLF's notice.

Francisation: how to offer French classes to your employees?

As we've seen, company management and staff need to ensure that French is widely used among their employees. This can be achieved by offering French online courses, the costs of which can be partially covered by the government through financial aid.

What? Short courses to help your employees learn French so they can perform their job-related tasks in French. These classes are tailor-made to meet your company's needs: they can be courses focusing on health and safety in the workplace, sector-specific courses or even training in written French.

The good news is that Global Lingua is one of the service providers approved by the Ministère de l'Immigration, de la Francisation et de l'Intégration!

When? Training courses must be given during paid working hours, but can take place face-to-face at the workplace or remotely, by videoconference. This is one of the advantages of Global Lingua's online courses: they can be taken from anywhere!

How? To request French language training for your employees, you need to create a profile on the Arrima platform. You can then follow these steps, which are explained in greater detail on the official website:

• Log in to Arrima or create a company profile on the platform.
• Complete and submit an online support request.
• Validate your needs with a consultant from the Ministère de l'Immigration, de la Francisation et de l'Intégration. (A consultant will contact you by phone or email within five working days to offer you support.)
• Fill out and submit a request for French-language workplace training services for French classes.

Financial aid for short French courses

If you meet certain criteria, it's possible to apply for financial assistance of up to $25,000 to cover certain expenses, such as training establishment fees, teaching materials and training content. You could also receive up to $75,000 to reimburse all or part of the salary of employees who are released to attend short French courses during paid working hours. This financial assistance can cover wages, up to a maximum of $25 per hour, excluding payroll taxes charged to the employer.

To find out more, click here.

If you have any questions about French courses to help your company become French, contact our customer service department! We can help you create a customized training program for your employees.