MONTREAL - Quebec's provincial workplace health and safety board is implementing a recommendation from the Office de la langue francaise requesting Quebec business owners be refused service in English.
The Commission de la sante et de la securite du travail du Quebec, or CSST, is one of a series of government agencies forced to comply with the OLF laws. They ask that all communication with employers, suppliers and partners must be in French only, unless the head office of those parties is located outside Quebec.
"The message is the language of business and commerce here in Quebec is French and the public services will use French," said Office de la langue francaise spokesperson Martin Bergeron.
The language office said it noticed back in 2007 that 50 per cent of public agencies were offering English services to business owners in the city, ignoring the government policy adopted in 1996, and therefore conducted a sweep of 165 organizations.
That includes the CSST, something some business owners find frustrating.
Family business ACE Hardware on St. Laurent Blvd. has been a staple of the Plateau for decades, and owner Paolo Perreira said he feels like an outcast for no longer receiving CSST services in English.
"Why make it harder on the person that's already going through tough times?" he said.
Perreira said the CSST is not the only government agency that has made him feel the pinch.
The government course to obtain a permit to sell pesticides is only offered in French.
"My colleague has the permit and if he's in the building we can sell the product, but only if he's here," he said.
During the lunch rush at Thursday's Bar and Grill, owner Bernard Ragueneau said he couldn't understand the change.
"If you are English and you pay taxes, I don't see why you couldn't get the service you get when you're French," he said.
