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Portrait of Official Language Minorities in Canada – Francophones in Nova Scotia
- 89-642-X
- Main page
- Introduction
- Section 1 Definitions of Nova Scotia's French-speaking population
- Section 2 Evolution of the population by mother tongue and first official language spoken
- Section 3 Factors influencing the evolution of the French-mother-tongue population
- Section 4 A few sectors essential to the vitality of official-language minority communities
- Section 5 Subjective sense of vitality
- Conclusion
- References
- Tables, charts and maps
- Appendices
- More information
- PDF version
- Other issues in this series
Section 4 A few key sectors essential to the vitality of official-language minority communities
- 4.1 Health
- 4.2 Justice
- 4.3 Education
- 4.4 Media, arts and culture
- 4.5 Community life
- 4.6 Employment and income characteristics
The Roadmap for Canada's Linguistic Duality 2008-2013 calls for investing in five key sectors: health, justice, arts and culture, economic development and immigration. The last of these sectors was briefly discussed in the previous section and was dealt with in an analytical report released by Statistics Canada (Houle and Corbeil, 2010). This section will present statistics on the other four key sectors identified in the Roadmap. Also, the Roadmap includes financial support for education in the minority language. This sector was identified as being of great importance for the future of official-language minorities in Canada (Lord, 2008); therefore, a section will be devoted to it.
Drawing on data from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities and the census, we will provide general information on the presence of French and the situation of Francophones in each of these sectors.
4.1 Health
A common language between patients and health care professionals is a key factor in access to health care services and their effective provision. Language barriers can mean that some members of minority Francophone communities are less well served by health care services. It is therefore important to examine the situation of Nova Scotia's Francophone communities regarding various aspects of access to health care services.
In the 2006 Census, 20% of doctors working in Nova Scotia, or 280 out of a total of 1,380, reported that they were able to conduct a conversation in French, while 5.4% reported using French at least regularly1 at work.2 For nurses, who numbered 9,625, these proportions were 9.5% and 3.2% respectively.
The proportion of doctors and nurses who are able to conduct a conversation in French is much higher than the relative share of the Francophone population. Nevertheless, results from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities show that the vast majority of Nova Scotia Francophones (81%) report using French in their contacts with the different health care professionals about whom information was collected in that survey: family doctors, nurses, telephone health line or telehealth service professionals and professionals in other places that people go to in order to obtain care.
According to the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 42% of Nova Scotia Francophones report that it is important or very important for them to obtain health services in French. Nevertheless, English is used in most cases with nurses (82%), family doctors (75%) and professionals and specialists in other places where health care services are provided (81%). Lack of knowledge of French by health care professionals, as perceived by the respondents, is the main reason given by Francophones to explain why they are not served in French during their visits/consultations. This reason thus greatly influences the main language used to communicate during these consultations.
Overall, the results of the SVOLM and the census show that three important factors affect the extent of use of one language or the other with health care professionals: the weak concentration of Francophones in their municipality of residence, the availability of professionals with knowledge of French and the main language of those requesting service.
The presence of Francophone professionals as well as professionals able to conduct a conversation in the minority language is likely to increase access to health care services in French. It may also be conducive to a stronger presence and more widespread use of French in this key sector of the public sphere. However, the gap observed between the proportion of these professionals able to conduct a conversation in French and the population of Francophones using French to obtain health services suggests that the active offer of services in the minority language may be an issue that should be examined more closely.
Another important question is whether Francophones who report having French as their main language are more likely to use French in their interactions with health care professionals than those with English as their main language. The lack of use of the minority official language by Francophones for whom French is the main language—that is, the language in which they are most at ease—does not depend on the same factors as in the case of Francophones who have made a language shift resulting in their now being more at ease in English. The results of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities reflect the fact that whatever their main language, a large majority of Francophones (81%) use English in their contacts with different health professionals. However, in their interactions with their family doctor, Francophones who have French as their main language are proportionally less likely (76%) to use English as those with English (90%) as their main language.
However, information from the SVOLM clearly shows that for Francophones, obtaining health care services in the language of their choice does not necessarily mean obtaining them in French. Thus, since 35% of Nova Scotia Francophones have English as their main language, it is not surprising that French is not their "language of choice" for obtaining health care services.
4.2 Justice
An examination of results from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) in the field of justice sheds light on the extent to which French language is present among institutions that ensure its use in the public sphere by Nova Scotia Francophones. By measuring the level of access to justice practitioners who are able to converse in French, one can document a phenomenon that is perceived by Francophones living outside Quebec as being very important for the status of French and the future of French-speaking minority communities. In this regard, the Canadian government undertook in the Roadmap to ensure that Canadians have better access to justice services in the minority official language. In the case of Nova Scotia, English remains the only language used in debating, publishing and enacting laws in the Legislative Assembly, as no simultaneous French-to-English interpretation is available. Moreover, Nova Scotians do not have access to trials in French in civil courts, although they are now entitled to judicial and legal services in French in Small Claims Court, Family Court and Probate Court, as well as before the Residential Tenancies Board. The province's Francophones can also access the services of the Association des juristes d'expression française de la Nouvelle Écosse (AJEFNÉ), which has been promoting public awareness and information about these matters since 1994. Concerning criminal law as stipulated by the Criminal Code of Canada, Nova Scotia Francophones, like all residents of Canada, are entitled to a trial and a preliminary inquiry in French.
In Nova Scotia, SVOLM results show that access to justice services in French does not appear to be highly valued by a majority of Francophones: 33% feel that if they had to use the services of a lawyer, it would be either important or very important for the lawyer to be able to speak French. It should be noted that interactions with the justice system and its representatives, including lawyers and the police, are not widespread among the population. Of Nova Scotia's roughly 26,350 adult Francophones, 29% reported that they had used the services of a lawyer in the two years preceding the survey, while 27% had come into contact with police, including municipal police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
Because the language barrier can hinder access to justice, the Canadian government has made it a priority to train professionals who can provide service in the minority official language. According to the 2006 Census, Nova Scotia had 355 lawyers able to conduct a conversation in French, which represents 20% of the provinces' lawyers. As for police officers, 15% reported that they were able to conduct a conversation in French (see Table 4.1).
In addition to these statistics on the potential pool of justice system professionals who are able to use French when interacting with Nova Scotia Francophones, Tables 4.1 and 4.2 show their knowledge of French and their use of this language at work. According to the 2006 Census, 8% of Nova Scotia police officers reported using French at least regularly at work (see Table 4.1). This rate is much lower than the proportion who can conduct a conversation in French, namely 15%. The same applies to lawyers: their rate of use of French at least regularly at work is also much lower than the proportion of lawyers who are able to conduct a conversation in French, namely 20%3 (see Table 4.2).
Table 4.2 Knowledge and use of minority language by lawyers, Nova Scotia, 2006
According to 2006 Census data, the number of police officers who use French at work in Nova Scotia is higher than the number of Francophone police officers. Thus, whereas nearly 150 of the provinces' police officers reported using French at least regularly in their work, 100 had French as their first official language spoken (FOLS) (see Table 4.1). The same is true for lawyers: the number of lawyers who communicate at least regularly in French in their work is greater than the number of Francophone lawyers. A certain number of non-Francophones thus reported using French as a language of work, which adds to the existing pool of professionals who are likely or able to provide services in French. Despite this, only English was used by a large proportion of Francophones, 72%, when they used the services of a lawyer.
4.3 Education
4.3.1 Children
Access to French-language schools and management of Francophone minority education systems have long been burning issues for Francophones outside Quebec. In many provinces, the education of Francophones in their own language was greatly limited by the fact that most French schools received no government funding until the early 1970s (Corbeil, 2003).
In a minority situation, French schools are accorded special status because of their role as an agent of socialization to French culture, transmission of the French language to children and maintenance of skills in that language. School is a public Francophone environment which, along with the family, can help Francophone community life to develop and flourish.
In Nova Scotia, the adoption of the Education Act in 1981 allowed French-language schools—namely Acadian or homogeneous schools—to be defined and created for the first time, where warranted by sufficient enrolment. Moreover, under this Act, the control and management of these educational institutions was delegated to representatives of the linguistic minority. In 1982, section 23 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms guaranteed certain education rights to official-language minorities. In so doing, it granted the minority's representatives the control and management of "aspects of education which pertain to or have an effect upon their language and culture." [translation] (Boudreau, 2007) In 1996, following the release of the White Paper on Restructuring Nova Scotia's Education System, the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP) was created, which provided Francophones with the management of their own educational institutions. In August 2003, the CSAP was given the task of developing educational programs for the French-first-language school system. By 2011, the CSAP comprised 21 elementary and secondary schools, for a total of more than 4,000 enrolments throughout Nova Scotia. At the postsecondary level, Université Sainte-Anne offers Francophones and Francophiles a wide range of programs that use French as the language of instruction and work.
In light of all this, it is important to be able to measure the extent to which French-language schools are attended by children who are eligible to attend them, and to examine factors that influence decisions concerning children's language of instruction. Data from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities can be used to estimate, for children of Francophone parents in Nova Scotia, the number eligible for French-language education who are enrolled in a French-language school or French immersion program. The data can also be used to examine the association between attending a French-language school and the use of languages, in particular at home and with friends.
In Nova Scotia, 6,610 children of Francophone parents were enrolled in kindergarten, elementary or secondary school at the time of the survey. Of those children, 68% were receiving an education in French, including 51% in a French school. The remaining children enrolled in kindergarten, elementary or secondary school (32%) were attending an English-language school (regular program). These results suggest that a number of factors may be inter-related: on the one hand, the language in which children are educated and on the other hand, the proportion of exogamous couples; the existence of English language transfer for many Francophones under 21 years of age; and the fact that a sizable proportion of Francophones feel more at ease in English than in French. For example, of the 5,910 children with at least one Francophone parent, the majority (64%) were from French-English exogamous families. Of these, 42% were enrolled in the regular program of an English-language school.
The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities also reveals that attending a French-language school or a French immersion program in an English school seems to be as popular a choice for children enrolled at the secondary level as at the elementary level. The results suggest, for both French schools and French immersion programs, a continuing level of enrolments through the transition between elementary and secondary school: 70% of children were enrolled in a French-language school or a French immersion program at elementary school, while 72% were enrolled in the same programs at the secondary level (see Appendix B).
Apart from the environmental characteristics mentioned above, other factors influence the choice of the language of a child's school. In particular, the language used by parents in their own educational pathway appears to strongly influence their choice of language of instruction or school system for their children. Thus, of the 3,180 children with at least one parent who had been educated in French at elementary and secondary levels, approximately 78% were attending a French-language school or French immersion program and approximately 70% spoke French at home, including 48% most often.
Data from the SVOLM do not yield statistically significant results as to the association between children's school attendance in French and the sole or predominant use of French at home or with friends; nor to the association between school attendance in French and the ability to use French to conduct a conversation. However, an association can be established between attendance of a French school and use of French in various contexts. Thus, the majority of children who attend a French-language school use French—either alone or with English— when speaking with their friends (73%), use French most often at home (74%) and are therefore able to use it to conduct a conversation in the vast majority of cases (96%).
4.3.2 Adults
4.3.2.1 Highest level of education attained
In the 1960's, the Dunton–Laurendeau Royal Commission used statistics from the 1961 Census to describe the very large disparities observed between Francophones and Anglophones in Canada with respect to education as well as to labour market status and various spheres of economic activity. Notably because of compulsory education until age 16 and the growing importance that governments, employers and the general public assigned to education, the disparities between Francophones and Anglophones in Canada have greatly diminished over time. An important indicator of the progress made since the Dunton–Laurendeau Commission is the highest level of schooling reported by Nova Scotia Francophones in 2006.
To illustrate the phenomenon, we will first examine the results concerning the situation in 2006 shown in Chart 4.1. As may be seen, Francophones and Anglophones differ very little regarding postsecondary education. Francophones (18%) are as likely as Anglophones to have a college diploma (20%), and the proportion of Francophones with a university degree (17%) is also similar to that of Anglophones (18%). However, at lower educational levels, Francophones (29%) are more likely than Anglophones (23%) to have no certificate, diploma or degree whereas Anglophones (21%) are more likely than Francophones (15%) to have a high school diploma.
The findings shown in the above chart cover the overall population aged 25 and over and therefore reflect both the present and past educational situation of language groups.
Chart 4.2 clearly illustrates this point with a look at selected sub-populations defined according to their age group. When we focus on the 25 to 34 age group, we see that a much higher proportion of Anglophones than Francophones have no certificate, diploma or degree. By the same token, Francophones are more likely than Anglophones to have a university degree. In the 35 to 54 age group, there are essentially no gaps between Francophones and Anglophones. In the 65 and over group, Francophones are much more likely to have no diploma, while Anglophones are slightly more likely to have a college or university diploma.
4.3.2.2 Adults' language of instruction
As mentioned earlier, in Nova Scotia overall, two thirds (68%) of children with at least one French-speaking parent are enrolled in the regular program of a French-language elementary or secondary school or in a French immersion program. What about the language of instruction for adults who responded to the Survey on the Vitality of Language Minorities? According to respondents' answers to various survey questions concerning the language in which they pursued part or all of their education, the presence of French varies from one age group to the next and from one education level to the next.
Table 4.3 shows that more than three-fourths (78%) of Nova Scotia Francophones had all or part of their elementary education in French. This proportion declines as young people continue on their educational path, then rebounds at the university level. Thus, while 64% of Francophones had part or all of their secondary education in French, this proportion is 69% for those who pursued a university education.
The results of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities reveal a sizable gap between adults under age 25 and those 25 and over as regards attending elementary and secondary school in French. While approximately 88% of Francophones under age 25 attended French school at the elementary level and 80% at the secondary level, the corresponding proportions are smaller for older Francophones. In fact, the younger are the province's Francophones, the more likely they are to have been educated in French at the elementary and secondary levels. This difference is notably due to the fact that Nova Scotia Francophones increasingly have access to French schools.
4.4 Media, arts and culture
Support for arts and culture is one of the key elements targeted by the Roadmap, which recognizes the essential role played by arts and culture in the development of minority official-language communities.
The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities measures access to cultural products in the minority language in six media: television; the Internet; radio; newspapers; books; and live performances and arts events. These days, the Internet and cable television facilitate access to these media in various languages and from many countries, thereby increasing the availability of various French-language cultural products throughout Canada.
The SVOLM results show that Nova Scotia Francophones, like their Anglophone counterparts, are big consumers of various media, led by television (96%) (see Table 4.4).
A majority of Nova Scotia Francophones are inclined to report that they read newspapers (91%), watch television (79%), listen to the radio (72%), read books (72%) and access the Internet (80%) mainly or only in English. Access to French-language media is therefore not the only factor that influences consumption in the minority language: SVOLM results reveal that despite technological advances facilitating access to various French-language media, English predominates in media use.
4.5 Community life
It is generally recognized that people's civic engagement and participation in community activities are dimensions of civic life that contribute to creating and maintaining social support networks. Also, "social capital (broadly defined as participation in social networks) is increasingly being understood as a key component of community development or a key aspect of the 'capacity' of a community to develop." (Rothwell and Turcotte, 2006, p. 1)
Data from the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities lend themselves to measuring several dimensions of Francophones' participation in community life. Statistics on participation in volunteer activities, membership in community organizations and informal care giving can be used to examine the extent to which Francophones are collectively engaged in the life of their community.4
Data indicate that 27% of Francophone adults reported that they had been a member of an organization, network or association in the 12 months preceding the survey, while 33% reported doing volunteer work and 31% provided unpaid assistance with everyday activities to someone not living in their household. Approximately 28% of Francophones reported having participated in at least two of these three types of activities.
When Nova Scotia Francophones engage in community activities, their language of interaction varies depending on the type of activity. Whereas 23% of Francophones use mainly or only French when participating in organizations, networks or associations, 30% use French when volunteering and 38% when providing social support for day-to-day activities to people who do not live in their household. Conversely, between 40% and 60% of them use mainly or only English in these community activities, reflecting the predominance of this language. Note that assistance with day-to-day activities is most often provided to family members—excluding children—(43%) and to friends (30%). Consequently, family and friends seem to be very important members of Francophones' networks in Nova Scotia. For example, in case of illness, 27% report that they would turn to their children for support, while 41% would turn to other family members and 11% to their friends. The use of French in social support activities thus seems to be mainly associated with the private sphere.
According to the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 78% of Nova Scotia Francophones report that it is important or very important to them that individuals or organizations work to develop the Francophone community. Also, 24% of those who join organizations, networks or associations do so in order to promote the Francophone community.
4.6 Employment and income characteristics
One can use data from both the census and the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) to examine the extent to which Nova Scotia Francophones work in different industry sectors than Anglophones. These data allow one to identify similarities and differences in how language groups are distributed among various industry sectors.
A brief analysis of 2006 Census data reveals that Nova Scotia Francophones are more likely than their Anglophone counterparts to work in particular sectors such as public administration, education services and agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting. These three sectors employ respectively 15.1%, 10.6% and 7.9% of the province's Francophones, compared with 8.1%, 7.4% and 4.7% of Anglophones (see Chart 4.3). For their part, Anglophones are more likely to have jobs in retail trade, at 12.6%, compared with 8.3% of Francophones. In other major industry sectors, the two groups differ very little.
Table 4.5 Distribution of Francophone workers by industry sector, Nova Scotia, 2006
4.6.1 Use of French at work by industry sector
Of all Nova Scotia workers aged 15 and over, 4.3% use French most often or on a regular basis at work. Among those with only French as their first official language spoken, this proportion reaches 63%, with 32% speaking French most often and 31% speaking it regularly (that is, less often than the predominant language).
Table 4.5 reveals that Francophones were working in various specific sectors. For example, the public administration, education, and health care and social assistance sectors account for nearly half (47%) of the province's Francophone workers. What about the use of French by Francophones in different sectors? It is hardly surprising that Francophone workers in the education sector are among the groups of workers who use French the most in their work: 62% use it most often and 14% use it regularly (see Chart 4.4). There are several industry sectors, including management of companies and enterprises, and agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, where more than 70% of Francophone workers use French at work, either most often or regularly. Nevertheless, Francophones in the public administration sector are proportionally the most likely to use French on a regular basis at work, with 57% doing so. However, few in that sector use it predominantly.
4.6.2 Income differentials
Historically, Canada's Francophones have been economically disadvantaged. Nova Scotia Francophones were no exception. Since the income level of individuals is highly dependent on their education level, their occupation and the industry sector in which they work (to name only these factors), it would appear that the substantial changes within Nova Scotia's Francophone communities in recent decades have had major effects on their income level.
It is beyond the purpose and scope of this report to analyze the factors that have influenced the evolution of income differentials between language groups. However, statistics from the 2006 Census suggest that the status of Nova Scotia Francophones has greatly improved over time.
The 2006 statistics reveal that mean and median incomes of persons with French as their first official language spoken are slightly higher than those of Anglophones. Thus, men having French as their only first official language spoken (FOLS) have mean and median incomes nearly $4,000 higher than those of men in the English FOLS group. For women, Francophones' mean and medium incomes are similar to those of Anglophones (see Table 4.6). As to the mean and median incomes of persons with both French and English as first official languages spoken, for men, they are lower than those of Francophones and Anglophones, while for women they are slightly higher. For example, the mean and medium incomes of Francophone men are higher than those of men with French and English FOLS men by a margin of nearly $12,000, while for Francophone women they are approximately $2,000 lower.
In light of the historical context described above, it is clear that the median income of the two language groups is associated with age. The statistics provided in Charts 4.5-a and 4.5-b show that among men from 15 to 64 years of age, Francophones have a higher median income than Anglophones, with the gap reaching more than $11,000 for those aged 25 to 44. On the other hand, among men aged 65 and over, the median income of Anglophones is higher than that of Francophones by nearly $5,000. Among women, while Francophones aged 25 to 44 have a median income exceeding that of Anglophones by $4,000, the gaps are smaller and favour Anglophones for those aged 15 to 24 and 45 and over.
Several factors may explain the income differential between Francophones and Anglophones. Although the results on the general population reveal that for both men and women, Francophones' mean incomes exceed those of Anglophones, these differences are due in part to a number of characteristics that distinguish the two populations. For example, as previously noted, Nova Scotia's Francophone population under 65 years of age is more educated than the Anglophone population. The age structure of the population is also a factor affecting the mean and median incomes of this population.
An in-depth analysis of census results, specifically using the multivariate analytical technique, reveals that age, sex, education, type of place of residence, industry sector and immigrant status are instrumental and partly explain these differences. Thus, if Francophones and Anglophones had exactly the same profile with respect to these characteristics (which is not the case), the mean income of Anglophone women in Nova Scotia would be approximately $700 lower than that of Francophone women. For men, this difference, also favouring Francophones, would be $2,700.
Chart 4.5-b Median income of men, by age group and first official language spoken, Nova Scotia, 2006
Notes
- In other words, either most often or on a regular basis.
- On this subject, see Table 2.1 of Health Care Professionals and Official-Language Minorities in Canada: 2001 and 2006 (Blaser, 2009, p. 20).
- As in the case of health care professionals, the use of French by lawyers and police officers depends on a number of factors, including the proportion of Francophones in a given community. However, an analysis of these factors is beyond the scope of this statistical portrait.
- A number of sociodemographic and economic factors influence community participation, including age, education level, residential environment and socioeconomic status. However, an analysis of these factors goes beyond the objective of this report.
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