ListNook

Octogenarian Mar 30, 2026 +554

What if he hadn't made the official statement himself and sent a representative of the company to do it? Why does it have to be him?

554

-Dargs Mar 30, 2026 +242

Tbf, if he didn't, it could also be seen as disrespectful. It was a lose lose for him.

242

astral__monk Mar 31, 2026 +38

I don't know if I can follow the "lose-lose" part. He's had years since the last time this language issue blew up in his face. That's a whole lot of time to at least become embarrassingly passable at reading a prepared response off a teleprompter (and not even in real time, as many takes as he needs). I'd argue most Canadians could get to that level in a week. His indifference was a deliberate choice and it's not like he didn't know this was a political sticking point. The bar was very low, and he didn't meet it.

38

urbanacrybaby Mar 31, 2026 +22

And if he had done it in French, it would sound a little awkward and people would say it was disrespectful or that his emotions were fake.

22

maporita Mar 31, 2026 +166

No that's not correct. Carney speaks French poorly but people in Quebec love the fact that he tries. For comparison, Yves Blanchette, a Quebecois politician who never speaks English in parliament, did so when he offered condolences to the families of the Tumbler Ridge shooting in BC. He did so out of respect for the families. But apart from that it takes very little practice to learn a couple of paragraphs of French on a teleprompter. He could have done it easily but just chose not to.

166

Mens-Real Mar 31, 2026 +55

I agree, but Quebecois still expect a CEO living and working in Montreal to be functional in French. Pretending to speak it in a prerecorded message, but for instance only answering journalist questions in English after, would have been a big issue. You have to remember this whole saga is the continuation of what happened five years ago when he was boasting about how he can live in Montreal without French. He ended up promising to learn French with his tail between his leg, but as we now know never did.

55

Robert_Le_Gateau Mar 31, 2026 +75

Nah. The major disrespect here comes from the fact that 5 years ago, he stated he would learn french. He did 300 hours of class, but apparently he couldn't even know how to pronounce the words. Hell, some immigrants come into Quebec and learn a good enough level to pass through society with that much hours. Coupled with the fact that his mother speaks french, there is a bunch of french culture in his family, and even his name is French, he is seen as a phony liar. He didn't really want to learn it.

75

NeighbourNoNeighbor Mar 31, 2026 +44

He also bragged about not needing to learn French while living in Montreal during his last incident for failing to uphold the requirements for his position. The government didn't make him retire, and they didn't even *threaten* to punish him. They just summoned him to have a discussion about why this is _still_ an issue. The CEO resigned because he's constantly made Air Canada look terrible due to his complete inability to handle the PR side of the job, even when it's unrelated to French. He's, quite frankly, a pretty terrible CEO. He also generated a ton of bad press during the strikes, as he just doesn't care.

44

lordvbcool Mar 31, 2026 +47

Air Canada is legally obligated to serve its customers in both official language When they hired him there was outrage over his monolinguist but he pinky swear he would take french class. We knew he wouldn't learn shit 'cause he had been living in Montréal for over a decade and a half at this point and still didn't speak french but whatever, it eventually fell out of the news cycle Now we are 4 years later and he cannot even pretend he took those class to read a teleprompter for 2 sentence allowing himself to offer his condolences in the language of the pilot's family. Yeah, that was it. He had 4 years to do what we knew he wouldn't and he proved we were right all along If he would have send someone else to do the french version there would still have been outrage. It would have been less disrespectful but still disrespectful

47

scratsquirrel Mar 31, 2026 +14

He is paid millions per year and it’s a requirement of his job and has been for a number of years now. This is not someone to pity. The vast majority of us would learn French to be paid half as much as what they were paying him. At least one of the pilots was from Quebec and predominantly French speaking so it absolutely should have been said in both official languages.

14

NorthernFrosty Mar 31, 2026 +5

> He is paid millions per year and it’s a requirement of his job and has been for a number of years now. This is not someone to pity. One of the perks of his job is that he can get free French lessons!! He literally promised to learn French 5 years ago, and he had every support mechanism in place and then when there's a disaster and he's making a speech to Canadians, he still can't even read a prepared statement in French. This is not someone to pity.

5

SunflaresAteMyLunch Mar 30, 2026 +773

He must have really incompetent comms people - it's not hard to have someone write part of the speech in French, transcribe is phonetically and ask someone to coach you through it. Half an hour and he'd have aced it. Not smart...

773

Yuukiko_ Mar 30, 2026 +579

This guy bragged about living in Montreal for 14 years and not learning French

579

Thorteris Mar 30, 2026 +300

CEOs last name is Rousseau at that lmaooo couldn’t make this up

300

supe_snow_man Mar 31, 2026 +128

His mom, wife and kid speak French. That's not a case of "I'm too stupid to learn a language", it's a case of "I don't give a single f*** about the official language of the place I lived for about 2 decades". He was on a hot seat about it as soon as he became CEO and pledged he would learn French. It's been years with hundred of hours of tutoring and the best he could manage was 2 words. We were not expecting a reincarnation of Moliere. We are 100% used to Anglophone butchering the prononciation and we still appreciate the effort. People went nuts when the captain of the hockey team was able to go through an interview in broken French.

128

Spaghetti-Rat Mar 30, 2026 +18

He pronounces it R-ow-soo

18

Ludwigofthepotatoppl Mar 30, 2026 +34

Oh THAT may be what got the Quebecois so steamed about it.

34

Mens-Real Mar 31, 2026 +20

It's very common in Canada to have monolingual anglos with French names considering anglo provinces basically outlawed teaching French in schools for many many years. Canada would be 50% French speaking without that and Quebec wouldn't have to fight as hard for itself or at least would have allies.

20

Umikaloo Mar 31, 2026 +11

A way I explain it to Americans is that the Quebec government goes out of its way to ensure no citizen will ever be forced to learn English in order to live in Quebec.

11

Intelligent-Fan2410 Mar 30, 2026 +16

Ooof that’s just tragic

16

DarthBrooks69420 Mar 30, 2026 +60

Wow that's impressive. Usually people are going HONHONHON BAGUETTE without even realizing it within a month of moving there.

60

Desmaad Mar 30, 2026 +80

It's Montreal, so it would be more "TABARNAK! POUTINE!".

80

Yuukiko_ Mar 30, 2026 +12

I've seen kids learn more in a single month of french immersion than this man

12

supe_snow_man Mar 31, 2026 +5

This man had years including hundreds of hours of tutoring and didn't learn.

5

lars03 Mar 31, 2026 +2

Tbf kids learn languages at incredible speed, my niece knew 5 languages at 10 yo (his father is military and were moving a lot)

2

Yuukiko_ Mar 31, 2026 +2

This guy has lived in Montreal for the better part of 2 decades and (supposedly) has had a few hundred hours of french tutoring. You'd have to try to not speak french to be unable to even just read off a sheet

2

IvnOooze Mar 31, 2026 +8

He promised to learn French, 4 years ago. Said he took 300 hours of French classes. What a joke.

8

savagefleurdelis23 Mar 31, 2026 +20

Don’t forget that his mom speaks French, his wife and son speaks French. And he’s only lived in Quebec for nigh on 2 decades. Dude just doesn’t give a f***.

20

Nabla_223 Mar 30, 2026 +54

Which just shows how little he thinks about it, adding insult to injury. Anyway, he was there since 2021, 5 years is about right for this position, I'm sure he wouldn't leave if he didn't want to.

54

Filobel Mar 31, 2026 +4

People focus a lot on his English-only condolences, but the thing is, this is not his first controversy. It's just the latest of his f*** ups. Yeah, it's the straw that broke the camel's back, but it's not the sole cause. Basically, what I'm trying to say is... You're right, it wasn't smart at all, but Rousseau is not known for his smart decisions.

4

SteinersMathTeacher Mar 30, 2026 +21

Exactly. It’s not that he doesn’t fluently speak French, it’s that it shows that he truly does not give a shit.

21

291000610478021 Mar 30, 2026 +207

USA starves their Air traffic controllers and somehow the CEO of Air Canada resigns. K

207

Mens-Real Mar 31, 2026 +36

Canadians and especially the Quebecois are very involved in politics and demand changes when unsatisfied. Very healthy imo.

36

goldyforcalder Mar 31, 2026 +53

Only over very petty dumb things like this. We let major scandals go all the time

53

291000610478021 Mar 31, 2026 +33

..they demanded a CEO speak French. They didn't demand anything from the USA's negligence causing death of two Canadians. The 'outrage' is QC only bullshit

33

Tribe303 Mar 31, 2026 -6

Thats because actions still have consequences here in Canada.

-6

-_-Yeeter Mar 31, 2026 +55

And his deplorable actions were what again? The heinous act of not speaking in French?

55

291000610478021 Mar 31, 2026 +30

Two pilots are dead. You're worried about a CEOs language choice Prioritize your outrage tbh.

30

Farlander2821 Mar 31, 2026 +6

They don't care about the ATC system that led to the death of 2 Canadians but they care that someone who wasn't responsible couldn't speak French. Actions have no consequence unless it's some idpol thing they can get outraged about. Most people in aviation view the ongoing NTSB investigation into the cause of the accident and actions the DOT can take to avoid future accidents as far more important than whether some guy that no one's ever heard of speaks French

6

TimmTimm Mar 30, 2026 +1425

Quebec's favorite pastime is having a f****** aneurysm if someone doesn't say something in French.

1425

Yuukiko_ Mar 30, 2026 +370

Air Canada is still subject to the official languages act so they're required to communicate in french as well

370

darkstar107 Mar 30, 2026 +274

They had French subtitles...

274

pepperouchau Mar 30, 2026 +211

I’ve been assured that this is xenophobia and Anglo supremacy

211

Dear-Regret-9476 Mar 30, 2026 -15

iirc the law requires you to make French equal or have priority over English

-15

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 30, 2026 +93

Equally. Is just equal access. Not more, not less. Equal.

93

drweenis Mar 30, 2026 +74

In Quebec it’s more lol. There are some very aggressive anti-English laws in place here Edit since the separatists just showed up: Aggressive Language Measures (2021–2026) • Medical Communication Filters (2024): Establishes French as the exclusive default for healthcare; non-French speakers must navigate "eligibility" hurdles to receive care in English. • Academic Graduation Barriers (2023–2025): Forces non-eligible CEGEP students to pass a high-stakes French Literature exit exam and take core program courses in French to graduate. Basically if your parents are English you’re seen as a lost cause and are allowed to learn English. Otherwise stay French and have a harder time learning business/science. • University Financial Targeted Hikes (2024): Implements a 33% tuition hike ($9,000 to $12,000) for out-of-province students exclusively at English universities, siphoning their revenue and student base. • The Six-Month Service Cut-off (2023): Terminates all government services in English or other languages for newcomers exactly six months after their arrival. • The Justice "Translation Tax" (2022): Mandates that any legal filings made in English be accompanied by a certified French translation paid for by the individual or business. • Work Permit Language Ultimatums (2025): Requires temporary foreign workers to demonstrate French proficiency (Level 4) to renew their work permits after three years of residency. • Commercial Identity Erasure (2025): Legally requires French text on all public signage and commercial labels to be at least twice the size of any other language. • Small Business Surveillance (2025): Subjects small businesses with as few as 25 employees to "Francization" audits and government-mandated language committees. • Contractual Roadblocks (2022): Prohibits English-only "contracts of adhesion" (standardized service agreements) unless the customer is first presented with a French version. • Immigration Path Closures (2025–2026): Ended popular residency streams (like the PEQ) in favor of programs requiring high-level French proficiency (Level 7) for all applicants. It’s important to recognize that these laws are essentially a solution in search of a problem. While the government cites the 'decline of French' in Montreal’s unique, globalized (heavily international) landscape to justify these measures, the French culture of Quebec as a whole remains overwhelmingly secure. By applying a 'one-size-fits-all' provincial hammer to a Montreal-specific context, the province is effectively penalizing the city’s minority communities for a 'threat' that doesn't exist once you cross the bridge.

74

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 30, 2026 +9

The implication was about what applies to a federally regulated entity. (Air canada) Not signing laws in Quebec itself. Yes, in the province itself fremch must be predominant. For very good historical reasons.

9

drweenis Mar 31, 2026 +7

I see. Yes I agree with historical sentiment, less on the enactment of those concerns. By the way the province is French lol, predominantly…overwhelmingly…this is all just legal hammers being thrown at Montreal’s non French community.

7

fantaribo Mar 31, 2026 +2

No, this is protective laws put in place to stop in its tracks th trend to anglicise Quebec.

2

[deleted] Mar 30, 2026 +162

[removed]

162

pepperouchau Mar 30, 2026 +98

Also, if that were the motivation I’d expect similar policies for indigenous languages

98

Mirria_ Mar 30, 2026 +35

Québec offers a lot of essential services for the major native languages (including dedicated 911 call centres and interpreters), has legal protections for their cultural and education rights. I'm not saying it's perfect, and there's a lot of racism, but we're not trying to assimilate them. Despite Québec being majority French, the common default language for the native population is English. Because they too are a distinct culture within Canada.

35

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 30, 2026 +39

The prairies doesnt do any of this, and actively show just how much they dont care about natives every vhance they get, so they just assume its the same everywhere else and just think comment like these are a real "gotcha".

39

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 30, 2026 +25

Tell us you know absolutely nothing about the quiet revolution amd WHY it came about without telling us. A lot of English Canadians are strait up allergic to historical context yet very eager to have an opinion about it.

25

Mutchmore Mar 30, 2026 +4

Juste te dire un gros merci de tout tes commentaires sur ce post. Juste à lire les stupidité des ignorants ici me rend fou. J'apprécie tes efforts! Tabarnak!

4

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 30, 2026 +9

Y m'ont énervé le poil des jambes un peu. Je sais que l'internet ça peut etre une place un peu débile, mais aujourd'hui? Non. Ça passe pas! Haha.

9

MagiMas Mar 30, 2026 +77

I mean, I'm neither Quebecois, nor Canadian but if that's the general attitude they have to put up with inside the country then I'm not surprised they're trying to protect their language. How can you write that and then have the gall to call them chauvinistic?

77

SteinersMathTeacher Mar 31, 2026 +19

And if you still have any doubts on the attitude English Canadians have had towards the québécois people historically, look up what they called us up until the 70s. Being told to “speak white” was an incredibly common thing to be told by anglophones in Montreal up until a few decades ago (historically, the English were the ruling/wealthy class and French were blue collar). Just 2 generations ago, French québécois did not have access to the same schools, the same banks, and the same jobs as anglophones in Montreal.

19

GrandPapaBi Mar 31, 2026 +21

Also Desjardins foundation was created due to the banks of Quebec not issuing loans to people speaking french. So french canadian had to self finance themselves with neighbors and friends. This is the history that is not taught in the english province of Canada.

21

SteinersMathTeacher Mar 31, 2026 +9

Dude that username… core memories

9

Aggressive_Sky8492 Mar 31, 2026 +5

Non-Québécois Canadians can be quite weird about the québécois. I think there’s resentment on both sides. A lot of people think they’re overzealous or uppity in their protection of French. But imo that’s the only way to ensure the dialect endures long term, since they’re surrounded by English speaking areas and outnumbered by them

5

[deleted] Mar 31, 2026 +5

[deleted]

5

ABotelho23 Mar 30, 2026 +26

And then you wonder why there's a non-zero percentage of people in Quebec who would separate? Why do you think other countries typically separate? It's because they don't feel in control of their nation. I mean you basically just said "French is thriving in other countries, who cares about it in Canada?" and then act surprised when those people would literally go and create a new country to protect their culture?

26

Valance23322 Mar 30, 2026 +12

I'm not. Artificially maintaining language barriers is one of the dumbest wastes of time and effort imaginable.

12

Umikaloo Mar 31, 2026 +2

Part of the point of language protection is to ensure no Quebecer is ever required to know English in order to partcipate in society. There was a time in living memory when Quebecers did not have the right to services in French, which effectively disenfranchised monolingual Quebecers, making them second-class citizens in a province where they were the majority.

2

lordpanda Mar 30, 2026 +91

It's not about Quebec, as a former Crown corporation, Air Canada is mandated to offer services in both official languages. A french speaking pilot had just died and the CEO who lived 14 years in Montreal couldn't muster more than 2 words in French during his eulogy directed to his family. That's just a big lack of compassion.

91

TimmTimm Mar 30, 2026 -10

Alright, well considering the video had French subtitles, it met any requirements it may have had to under the act so that’s a moot point to begin with. And the idea that it’s “disrespectful” or “lacks compassion” is ridiculous. There are tons of foreign born pilots in the US and Canada and some of them have been in accidents. People don’t go screaming from the roofs when condolences aren’t provided to their families in their native language….because it’s the thought that matters, not the language it was provided in. Why is it suddenly disrespectful cause they’re specifically French Canadian?

-10

ac2fan Mar 30, 2026 +53

Spoke like someone who doesn’t have a clue about the contentious nature of Canada’s supposed bilingual policy: one of the pilots was francophone, Air Canada is based in Quebec where the sole official language is French, and its CEO couldn’t even muster a few words in French to save his life, that’s the core problem here

53

Ravenous_Stream Mar 30, 2026 +19

> it met any requirements it may have under the act Except it didn't

19

Mens-Real Mar 31, 2026 +10

Omg you know nothing of what is being discussed but have so many opinions. This is legit fascinating. The company is subject to bilingualism and is in a French speaking jurisdiction, Quebec. The guy lived in a francophone major metropolis (Montreal) without speaking a word of French and boasted about it. This means anyone he encountered for 20 years has had to switch to English to accommodate him. He's dysfunctional as a normal citizen let alone as a CEO who has to work with people who have a right to work in French. He then foolishly promsied to learn French when called out, and years later we find out he hasn't learned shit. The Quebecois are entirely justified here. Very proud people and lots of us should take note on this masterclass of demanding results out of their leaders and people in positions of power.

10

ABotelho23 Mar 30, 2026 +29

>Why is it suddenly disrespectful cause they’re specifically French Canadian? Because English *and* French are *both* official languages of the country? In case you didn't realize, they share that status equally. French isn't *supposed to be a second thought*.

29

adoreroda Mar 30, 2026 +6

People have dumb opinions like this but won't say anything about how the Canadian government spent decades trying to eradicate the French language from the country and was for the most part successful in every province but Quebec. They always look at the reaction of Quebeckers' but never the people who made them that way For the most part, they live in a country that initiated hostility and didn't want them to exist and they have to double down on that language because there are people who still exist like that.

6

TimmTimm Mar 30, 2026 +8

Cool, if we want to look at that historical aspect of it, where is this energy for all the speakers of native languages Canada has tried to stomp out for centuries?

8

Kingofcheeses Mar 30, 2026 +49

Quebec has language protections and services for Cree, Innu, Inuktitut, and Algonquin, as well as translation and revitalization efforts for 7 other indigenous languages, so I'm not sure what you mean here

49

tiboodchat Mar 31, 2026 +2

They’re trying real hard to tell us what a bigot they are.

2

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 30, 2026 +24

Its there, but half of western canada lose their collective mind if they have to hear something as simple as a symbolic public announcement/acknowledgement of a public place using treaty lands. Same energy.

24

Hstrike Mar 30, 2026 +13

Ah, whataboutism. The dominant language speakers' favorite tactic when they are reminded that their hegemony has boundaries. (This comment kept deliberately vague because this is a common behavior in every polity around the world with minority languages, which can be witnessed while the world undergoes a language death epidemic bigger than the biodiversity collapse the Earth is experiencing).

13

Budget_Addendum_1137 Mar 30, 2026 +10

But whatabout...

10

adoreroda Mar 30, 2026 +5

You're trying too hard to deflect and do whataboutism. This topic is about English and French. You can catch that energy when we're talking about native languages and it's relevant to the topic at hand Imagine this was a topic about misogyny against women in the workplace not being taken as seriously as it should and your dumbass just goes like "ok where's this energy for immigrants getting deported by ICE?" Like are you slow?

5

BCouto Mar 30, 2026 +2

Pls translate this to french

2

iamapizza Mar 30, 2026 +13

Omelette du fromage

13

fxkatt Mar 30, 2026 +47

>*"Despite many lessons over several years, unfortunately, I am still unable to express myself adequately in French," he said. "I sincerely apologize for this, but I am continuing my efforts to improve."* The Seven Years War continues into the 21stC--at least at the cultural level.

47

[deleted] Mar 30, 2026 +105

[removed]

105

SJSragequit Mar 30, 2026 +38

What’s bizarre about that?

38

Northerne30 Mar 30, 2026 +76

I think it's that the man with the French name who lived in Quebec doesn't speak French, and the man with the English name who didn't, can.

76

wartopuk Mar 30, 2026 +23

Contrary to popular belief, having a french name doesn't give you some genetic disposition towards learning french. There is no end to the people in Canada with french last names who do not speak french and despise bescherelle.

23

xiaowobudong Mar 31, 2026 +21

I think the french last name just makes it that much more ridiculous, having lived in Montreal for 14 years and french heritage yet refusing to learn the language is gross incompetence

21

slapshots1515 Mar 30, 2026 +12

Sarcastic way of saying when you’re the CEO of a flag carrier it’s a reasonable expectation that you learn their official languages if you don’t already know them.

12

dont_shoot_jr Mar 30, 2026 +9

I think there was an omission typo, “never learned”

9

kalarm2 Mar 30, 2026 +3

I also saw something bizarre at a previous job. Most of the employees were Montreal native and could not communicate in French to save their lives. Meanwhile some new employee moves in from BC and was taking classes to learn it.

3

ForgottenCrafts Mar 31, 2026 +14

Lets not forget the time where he openly admitted that he will not negociate with the striking flight attendants because he knows the feds will force them back to work.

14

TheMusicalTrollLord Mar 30, 2026 +108

As a non-Canadian, every time I read the comments on a story about a language-related controversy I start off thinking 'it seems like the Quebecois are getting a bit excessively worked up about this' and then the Anglo Canadians show up and immediately make it seem very justified

108

NeighbourNoNeighbor Mar 31, 2026 +33

IMO, as an anglo-Canadian, the government response to Air Canada is honestly justified. The media is just blowing the situation way out of proportion, and there seems to be some ... non-organic efforts to divide Canada through divisive and hateful social media chatter. The propaganda to divide Canada has gotten pretty bad lately, and it's largely being pushed by American-owned news. (Heck, America is directly funding and supporting the Alberta separatists.) For this situation: the CEO has repeatedly failed to uphold Air Canada's legal requirement for language equality, which they explicitly agreed to when they separated from a crown corp. Last time this happened, several years ago, he outright bragged about not bothering to learn French despite living in Montreal for years. In the fallout, he insisted he was actively taking lessons. It should be noted that his mother, wife, and kid all speak French perfectly fine. Despite his history, *all* the Canadian government did was summon the CEO to have a "Heeeeyyyy, so what's going on, buddy?" conversation. There weren't threats of punishment, and they didn't make him step down. They just summoned him. The CEO has chosen to step down entirely on his own, although I suspect it's likely the shareholders encouraging him to step down as this is far from the only PR disaster he, specifically, has been at fault for. He also generated way too much unnecessary heat during the strikes.

33

Tribe303 Mar 31, 2026 +23

This 👆 I'm also an Anglo AND have lived in Quebec. I'm with the Quebecois on this one.

23

KorgothBarbaria Mar 30, 2026 +7

Yes, thank you!

7

Neg_Crepe Mar 31, 2026 +5

Appreciate the end of your comment. They tried to erase French in Canada, when they couldn’t fully do it they just started acted even more like major dicks.

5

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 31, 2026 +6

The former is sadly caused by the later .

6

MaximumCelsius Mar 30, 2026 +36

After a quick google I'm amazed hoe much of Canada only speaks french

36

mrcanoehead2 Mar 30, 2026 +30

Did he announce this in both official languages? Does it count if he only announced it on one? Lol

30

Vanilla_Either Mar 30, 2026 +5

Both pilots were francophones and the head office is in Montreal. There are so many cultural reasons that this was not ok that english Canadians just do not seem to understand. C vraiment dommage mais je me suis fait dire "Speak White" plusieur fois dans ma vie alors je ne suis vraiment pas surprise par la reaction des anglophones qui ne semble jamais comprendre le dommage qu'ils on fait à notre culture. Je suis Franco-ontarienne et Reglement 17 par exemple a fait incroyablement de dommage à mes ancètres.

5

moosehunter87 Mar 30, 2026 +77

As a French Canadian there's much worse things we should be dealing with right now. This is ridiculous.

77

ShinyAnkleBalls Mar 31, 2026 +14

"on peut mâcher de la gomme pis marcher en même temps"

14

Neg_Crepe Mar 30, 2026 +18

On peut faire les deux

18

typing_away Mar 30, 2026 +10

I partly understand it. A pilot is from Quebec and his family doesn’t get condoleances in their language? Yeah it suck. But to bring all the previous conversation about French in this specific situation dilute what it is about : somebody who died at his job. He didn’t need to die.

10

Mens-Real Mar 31, 2026 +5

Those two issues are hardly related and speaking about one doesn't take away from the other. If anything I respect the Quebecois for fighting for respect and good representation when their laws are so grossly disregarded by a lazy cocky CEO. We could learn a lot from this type of engagement.

5

ierjoiwe Mar 30, 2026 +116

ITT: Anglo canadian circle jerk

116

adoreroda Mar 30, 2026 +35

angryphone circlejerk

35

pepperouchau Mar 30, 2026 +61

Excuse me, where is the francophone version of this comment, bigot

61

mandalorian_guy Mar 30, 2026 +14

["And now in French if you please."](https://youtu.be/jyO1ILQAGsU?si=5fRKaS4NG9hvmulG)

14

pepperouchau Mar 30, 2026 +6

Hell yeah, two of the greats!

6

Neg_Crepe Mar 30, 2026 +15

Threads like this always bring out their xenophobia

15

lordpanda Mar 30, 2026 +11

Lots of Albertans on lunch break

11

slashtrash Mar 30, 2026 +4

Same as it ever was

4

[deleted] Mar 30, 2026 +12

[deleted]

12

Obvious-Opportunity7 Mar 30, 2026 +24

He did a speech about the death of a Quebec born air Canada pilot in English, which many people saw as insulting, he didn’t even have somebody else do it in French for him. Even before this he was the head of the national air line, yet he couldn’t speak one of Canada’s two official languages, despite living in Quebec himself. Something he previously was caught bragging about. Edit Former national airline that was privatized, but which still revives a large amount of money from Ottawa, and is almost 10% owned by the Canadian government.

24

hehateme42069 Mar 30, 2026 +15

Him caught bragging about it really clears all confusion I had, appreciated 🙏🏾

15

Yuukiko_ Mar 30, 2026 +5

Air Canada is still subject to the official languages act

5

T4whereareyou Mar 30, 2026

The Canadian government sold their last remaining stake in Air Canada by late 2024.

0

[deleted] Mar 30, 2026 +28

[removed]

28

[deleted] Mar 31, 2026 +5

[removed]

5

MooseJag Mar 31, 2026 +16

Meanwhile the president of the united states can f*** children and nobody in their government blinks.

16

Worldly_Anybody_9219 Mar 30, 2026 +6

I'm just irritated that this has become the big debate while everyone is ignoring the pilots. I'm sure they wouldn't want their tragic deaths to devolve into a language debate.

6

Ok_Pollution7093 Mar 30, 2026 +26

Poor PR decisions finally caught up. Language controversy was just the last nail.

26

tampering Mar 30, 2026 +16

The oil price shock is going to hit airlines hard. The guy is 67, his lack of French was already an issue when he took the job. We don't need to feel sorry for him, sending him out to pasture with golden handshake is not the worse thing for a guy who old enough to be thinking non-stop of golf courses.

16

Spacer_Spiff Mar 30, 2026 +119

Why? Absolutely no one cares outside of Quebec.

119

the_tico_life Mar 30, 2026 +123

He lives and works in Montreal

123

Spaghetti_Dealer2020 Mar 30, 2026 +92

Because he's the CEO of a company covered under the official languages act thats headquartered in a French-majority city where the victims families speak French? I don't live in Quebec but thats objectively a bad look for someone who gets paid millions of dollars and presumably has access to countless resources to learn a language thats spoken everyday by a huge chunk of their workforce.

92

tetoffens Mar 30, 2026 +135

Quebec is not a minor consideration in Canada.

135

[deleted] Mar 30, 2026 -23

[removed]

-23

TranslatorTough8977 Mar 30, 2026 +56

I’m an anglophone from BC and he needs to go. This is just the latest example of his complete lack of respect for almost a quarter of the nation.

56

SoSoSpooky Mar 30, 2026 +14

Policy, but why it's a policy is another question entirely. I am not sure why you can't instead have the organization be required to communicate in both languages as opposed to a specific individual. Would rather have the focus be about making the right choice in terms of personnel vs limiting the pool down to a point where the best people might not be qualified or interested anymore. But if the objective of any business was just to hire the best people, they wouldn't be all clamouring to get people back into cubicles when they could instead hire the best global or at least national talent.

14

gollumaniac Mar 30, 2026 +21

One of the pilots who died was a native French speaker from Quebec. There's no excuse to downplay it here.

21

jbob88 Mar 30, 2026 +29

The irony is he would have understood the English perfectly fine, just like most French speaking quebecers. This was not at all about language issues and the fact that French Canada made it about themselves instead of the two late aviators says all we need to know about that cause.

29

Spaghetti_Dealer2020 Mar 30, 2026 -2

And how are you not making it about yourself by saying they shouldn't have a right to be upset that the CEO of a company based in their city cant even address them in the common language?

-2

FriendlyDespot Mar 31, 2026 +4

By that reasoning you could chastise anyone for pushing back against anyone making anything about themselves.

4

Neg_Crepe Mar 30, 2026

Don’t waste your time with this person.

0

jbob88 Mar 30, 2026 -15

English is a common language. In fact, it is the international language of both business and more relevantly; aviation. Case closed. Find something worthwhile to be outraged about.

-15

Spaghetti_Dealer2020 Mar 30, 2026 -8

What the f*** does that have to do with anything? You aren't even attempting to make an argument, or should every country that has an aviation industry drop their native language in favour of English? Ridiculous.

-8

jbob88 Mar 30, 2026 +3

[Quite literally, yes.](https://www.insightflyer.com/why-aviation-english-is-crucial-safety-communication-global-careers/#:~:text=Quick%20Fact:%20ICAO%20mandates%20all%20international%20pilots,Level%204%20English%20proficiency%20to%20operate%20safely.)

3

Spaghetti_Dealer2020 Mar 30, 2026 +12

Yeah thanks Im aware that English is the standard language of aviation, now what does that have to do with the subject of the CEO addressing the public?

12

jbob88 Mar 30, 2026 +9

The CEO of an airline? Really?

9

CanadianPapaKulikov Mar 30, 2026 +10

He's talking to the controlling tower or to the family of his dead employee?

10

[deleted] Mar 30, 2026 +22

[removed]

22

margmi Mar 30, 2026 +34

Subtitles satisfy the requirements of the official languages act.

34

TreemanTheGuy Mar 30, 2026 +13

Subtitles and a translator seems like a reasonable idea

13

Cicero912 Mar 30, 2026 +6

Quebec has an inflated sense of importance

6

TheAmazingKoki Mar 30, 2026 +29

Anglophones worldwide have an inflated sense of importance. Any time people don't 100% conform to you is like a personal attack it seems. They ask for equal treatment in the county where their language is an offical language and immediately it's a sense of importance.

29

Cicero912 Mar 30, 2026 +6

There is nothing in the "controversy" that indicates Air Canada as an organization was not following the rules. The video he made had French subtitles, and individuals are allowed to communicate in their preferred language anyways.

6

ArkyBeagle Mar 30, 2026 -1

They have an inflated sense of "back to the wall". Quebecois are awesome people. They know the history. I worked in Montreal for a while; this is completely legit. One guy had been a postdoc at Princeton but moved back. They tolerated my Anglophone-ness completely. I understand that Quebec City is another matter...

-1

djgost82 Mar 30, 2026 +6

This dude had already announced his retirement! Air Canada has been looking for a replacement since January loll they don't give a fck about French, even though the head office is in Montreal. AC has always been a joke.

6

Various-Passenger398 Mar 31, 2026 +6

Rather than focusing on the fact that two Canadians are dead due to the shitshow to the south, we launch a giant hissy fit over this.

6

seiryuu-abi Mar 30, 2026 +16

Anglo Canadians actually justifying this meanwhile losing their shit that recent immigrants don’t learn English in two years of being here. How about not supporting a dude living in Quebec for two decades not learning French, yeah?

16

monkeywithatool Mar 30, 2026 +6

God forbid that the next CEO only knows sign language.

6

Patof888 Mar 30, 2026 +13

In 3, 2, 1, Quebec bashing again

13

efqf Mar 31, 2026 +2

wow lol, did he have that in his job contract?

2

Umikaloo Mar 31, 2026 +2

He did, actually.

2

D_Winds Mar 31, 2026 +2

I don't think he'll be living destitute at his old age.

2

nukedkaltak Mar 30, 2026 +29

If you don’t live in Quebec, you can stfu about this story. The outcry is because after 2 decades in montreal, Rousseau (who notoriously bragged about his ‘achievement’ to not speak a lick of french while living for so long in Montreal) couldn’t be bothered to learn enough to line up a condolences paragraph in French. He refuses to learn and is proud of that, and Quebec rightfully thinks it’s disrespectful. Air Canada is headquartered in Montreal and by law has to provide equal services in both languages.

29

_Lucille_ Mar 31, 2026 +10

Why? The rest of Canada, and the world as well, are entitled to their opinion even if you disagree with it. Reality is that this is a really stupid reason. Had I died while visiting Quebec and the premier said their condolences in French, I would have been fine with it as well. People are quick to assume the pilots' families are offended but so far I don't think they have made any public statement, and honestly, turning this tragedy into some political BS is disgusting. Only people in Quebec will think I am being rude if I say sorry in English after bumping into them.

10

ArkyBeagle Mar 30, 2026 +4

Would a translator have sufficed?

4

didi0625 Mar 30, 2026 +25

Bro, even 2 sentences read on a a prompter and spoken with a broken accent would have made less noise. There is 0 effort. On par for most of the anglophones.

25

nukedkaltak Mar 30, 2026 +12

Not at all. Quebec wanted to see effort, he showed none.

12

quebecesti Mar 30, 2026 +13

It could have been a VP or anyone. But this guy likes to rub it in our face that he’s proud of not speaking our language. This is typical of some anglo montrealers, not all of them of course.

13

Stoic_Vagabond Mar 30, 2026 +18

ITT: Some Anglo-Canadians being ignorant enough to show French-Canadians exactly why enforcing language laws is good. Want to work in a major Québéc municipality. Expect to learn french; brag about not wanting to, get consequences.

18

lordpanda Mar 30, 2026 +12

Lol this sub would praise any CEO getting fired for any reason except the lack of compassion to actually address the family of a dead pilot in their native language, while living and working in Montreal for more than 14 years. Get real.

12

KorgothBarbaria Mar 30, 2026 +7

Also both is wife and mother are french and he did over 350 hours of learning french. He didn't speak it because he simply doesn't care to learn and use it. Well said, get real anglos.

7

SurrealistGal Mar 30, 2026 +4

I joke (as a French Canadian) if you're so hell-bent on not hearing French in Canada, there's a neat place where they almost always speak French.

4

No-Obligation4414 Mar 31, 2026 +6

English is our first language, for those who don’t know Quebec is about to elect a new federal party leader who has openly said he wants to hold a referendum to separate from Canada if he gains power, to my knowledge he will . It seems as though he has well more than a majority of quebecers backing him… I’m not sure why we as Canadians should be holding CEO’s of major corporations in Canada over not speaking French….. also why is the outcry from quebecers about not speaking French when it should be about those who passed away. They seem to lack any sympathy for those who passed and only care that they didn’t hear a Tabernak or bonjour in the speech….

6

decmcc Mar 30, 2026 +5

irony is the fact that the pilot would have been fired if they tried speaking French at work

5

Whatdoesthibattahndo Mar 30, 2026 +7

The important thing to remember in a tragedy is to make it about you

7

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 31, 2026 +3

I mean. The acting captain was French Canadian so... you know. Who is that tragedy about if not him as well?

3

_head_ Mar 30, 2026 +9

I would have thought all these French speaking Canadians would be focusing their righteous indignation on the FAA in the US for under staffing ATC for years and causing the deaths of these pilots... but no, that guy spoke English so f*** him!

9

Budget_Addendum_1137 Mar 30, 2026 +10

This guy can't walk and breathe at the same time.

10

Nanto_de_fourrure Mar 30, 2026 +6

"in the US", as you said. We can force change inside Quebec, can't do shit about the States. We are already boycotting the country in mass. We think it's a shit show down there already, it's not a secret.

6

ivan-ent Mar 31, 2026 +3

Seems stupid imo ,im irish and people dont get mad after some accident if condolences arent given in English and Irish seems a silly thing to be mad about

3

SatynMalanaphy Mar 31, 2026 +2

That's the difference between Canada and the US. Canadians take accountability seriously. Even for something relatively insignificant in the grand scheme of things but central to the Canadian ethos.

2

UBC145 Mar 30, 2026 +5

Retiring over this is f****** nuts.

5

[deleted] Mar 30, 2026

[removed]

0

Classic-Trifle-2085 Mar 31, 2026 +3

"Jarvis, quick, how can I prove the racism/quebec bashing allegations true?"

3

Air Canada CEO to retire after English-only condolence furor

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