The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal celebrates five years of helping businesses in their francization efforts

MONTRÉAL, March 22, 2013 /CNW Telbec/ - Coinciding with Francofête this week, the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal is proud to celebrate five years of involvement in francization in the workplace.

Started as part of the Stratégie commune d'intervention pour Montréal 2008-2013, the Board of Trade's initiatives confirm its desire and that of government and socioeconomic partners to support businesses in the Montréal metropolitan area in their francization efforts.

"Giving employees the opportunity to acquire the skills they need to work in a French-speaking environment is very important for our society," said Michel Leblanc, President and CEO of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal. "The city accounts for half of Quebec's population and half of its economy, and it attracts 83% of its immigrants. As such, it plays an essential role in ensuring the vitality of the French language in Quebec."

"Using French in the workplace also helps local businesses succeed," Mr. Leblanc said. "In Montréal, 80% of people use French in the workplace. So mastering the language allows companies to prosper more readily by giving them access to a larger labour pool, increasing productivity and allowing them to offer better customer service."

The two programs offered by the Board of Trade, in partnership with the Government of Quebec, were developed to reflect the reality, needs, sector of activity and pressures of businesses. French in the Workplace offers French courses in the workplace for companies with payrolls over $250,000 to develop their employees' knowledge of French. And Carrefour francisation offers a customized support service to help small businesses in their francization efforts.

"Since 2008, 304 businesses and more than 3,000 employees have taken advantage of the services of the French in the Workplace program," Mr. Leblanc said. "To date, over 300 small and medium-sized businesses have received their francization certificate thanks to Carrefour francisation's services, and 400 others are awaiting theirs. More importantly, close to 80% of small businesses approached decide to initiate the francization process. This very encouraging figure shows that the incentive-based and voluntary approach that we advocate works and that the tools available reflect the needs of businesses."

"These numbers clearly show the importance that the business community places on French," Michel Leblanc said. "The Board of Trade is proud to continue its efforts to help businesses develop an asset that is so vital to their success."

The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal is made up of some 7,000 members. Its mission is to represent the interests of the business community of Greater Montréal and to provide individuals, merchants, and local businesses of all sizes with a variety of specialized services to help them achieve their full potential in terms of innovation, productivity, and competitiveness. The Board of Trade is Quebec's leading private economic development organization.

SOURCE: Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal

For further information:

Sylvie Paquette
Advisor, Media Relations
Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
Phone: [phone], extension 4015
[e-mail]

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