While the debate over the place of French in the upper echelons of Quebec companies has made waves for months, the Mouvement d’éducation et de défense des actionnaires (MÉDAC) is struggling to convince Quebec’s major corporations and their shareholders to promote the official status of French.
The shareholder democracy group wants to see Quebec companies formally enshrine the status of French in their bylaws — but the proposal has received less than 2 per cent of votes whenever presented in shareholder meetings.
“Shareholder opposition does not reflect the importance of this issue,” said MÉDAC Director Willie Gagnon. “If it wasn’t an important issue, we wouldn’t be hearing about it in the middle every few months.”
MÉDAC’s proposal is designed to prevent “other dramas” involving language, explains Gagnon.
“By recognizing the official status of French, we could avoid situations where a Quebec company finds itself without a director who speaks French, or where a shareholders’ meeting is held solely in English.”
OPPOSITION FROM BUSINESSES
MÉDAC made its proposal to major publicly-traded Quebec companies it holds in its portfolio, such as the National Bank, CGI, Metro and Laurentian Bank.
But on each occasion, higher-ups recommended shareholders vote against the proposal.
Board members argue their companies are already governed by the Charter of the French Language — or apply its provisions when under federal jurisdiction — and that it’s therefore unnecessary to alter bylaws.
But Gagnon believes there’s a difference between respecting the letter of the law and honoring the spirit of the law.
“The spirit of the law is to promote the general use of French within businesses,” he said.
He says confirming the official status of French would be in keeping with this spirit.
Ivan Tchotourian, a Laval University law professor, said Quebec companies are missing an opportunity to send a message about the French language.
“It might be interesting to do a little more than just legal compliance. It’s good to comply with the law, but you have the right to give it a little social flavor and show that you’re doing a little more,” he said.
For its part, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) also voted against the MÉDAC proposal. While the Caisse has been critical of certain linguistic issues — for example, the absence of a francophone on Canadian National Railway’s board of directors — it’s choosing other means to promote French.
“As part of our shareholder commitment, we have had discussions with various companies during which we have communicated our expectations and our commitment to French,” said CDPQ spokesperson Maxime Chagnon. “It is then up to each of them to ensure that it is applied in compliance with the law and at all levels of the organization. We will not hesitate to continue the dialogue if necessary.”
Tchotourian was surprised to learn that the Caisse didn’t support the MÉDAC proposal.
“[The Caisse] is an extension of the Québec government. We know that the government is trying to defend the French language. I was surprised to see the Caisse’s position.”
“I think that people in the community may not have understood the message sent by the Caisse,” he added. “I thought the Caisse was clumsy in terms of its message.”
The CDPQ is a financial contributor to MÉDAC, and the two organizations communicate regularly, Gagnon pointed out.
ANOTHER ANGLE OF ATTACK
MEDAC will have no choice but to find another angle of attack to promote the French language within Quebec companies.
The group is considering various avenues, including a proposal that would require companies to specify whether senior executives and directors are fluent in French.
“It is difficult to verify whether a board of directors has members who speak French,” said Gagnon.
“This information should be public and disclosed by companies.”
This report was first published in French by The Canadian Press on April 25, 2022.