majority of montrealers 'not bothered' by lack of french in stores, oqlf finds
survey findings suggest quebecers aged 18 to 34 are more flexible, showing a greater acceptance of bilingual or english interactions.
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french language minister jean-françois roberge is urging quebecers to report stores that can’t serve them in french after a government survey found a majority of montrealers and many other quebecers are not particularly concerned by the issue. the findings suggest quebecers ages 18 to 34 are the most flexible and the least likely to insist on french compared to older age groups, showing a greater acceptance of bilingual or english interactions.
in the montreal area, 52 per cent of respondents said they would return to a store where they were served in a language other than french, as the issue “doesn’t bother” them.
another 27 per cent said they would go back but only “out of necessity.”
only 11.5 per cent said they would not return.
across quebec, a similar trend emerged, with 46 per cent indicating they aren’t concerned about not being served in french, the province’s majority language.
one-third of quebecers said they were “indifferent” when not served in french, while 39 per cent reported feeling “negative” about the experience.
quebecers under 34 were the most indifferent and the most likely to return to stores that didn’t serve them in french.
while many quebecers are flexible, the majority still prefer french as the language of service.
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overall, 78 per cent of quebecers preferred french service. this figure dropped to 67 per cent in montreal.
the survey of 3,822 adult quebecers, conducted in november and december 2023, was commissioned by the office québécois de la langue française and published tuesday.
the poll found 40 per cent of shoppers in the montreal region were greeted by store employees in a language other than french. that’s up from 27 per cent in a similar 2010 survey.
montrealers were the most likely to be welcomed in stores with a bilingual salutation, such as “bonjour-hi,” a greeting that was discouraged by a unanimous 2017 national assembly vote and a recent government advertising campaign.
thirty-four per cent of respondents from montreal said they were met with a bilingual greeting, compared to 25 per cent across quebec.
regarding language of service, 41 per cent of montreal respondents said they had been served in a language other than french, up from 25 per cent in 2010.
across quebec, 56 per cent of customers said they rarely or never ask for service in french when it is not first offered.
in a social media post, roberge said the results “confirm that we must be proactive on the french language issue, just as our government has been since its election in 2018.”
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he said the coalition avenir québec government has “defended and promoted” french by enacting bill 96, which toughened of the charter of the french language, commonly known as bill 101, and by bringing in new rules for commercial signs.
“our government will continue to work to reverse the decline of french, especially in montreal,” he said. “this is a matter of pride. we are determined to strengthen our official language.”
he invited “all quebecers to demand service in french in quebec businesses and to file complaints with the oqlf when this is not the case.”
official complaints about alleged violations of bill 101 have surged since the legault government began allowing anonymous grievances, encouraging whistleblowers to come forward.
in 2023-24, there were 9,125 complaints to the province’s language watchdog, a 45 per cent increase from two years earlier when complainants had to provide their names.
the oqlf ramped up its operations last year, conducting 40 per cent more inspections as complaints about violations of the province’s language laws reached new highs.
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