Your Association wishes to ensure that you are aware of your rights following the Department of National Defence’s (DND) decision to designate English as the language of work (LoW) at the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) and the Canadian Forces College (CFC). An important meeting on this matter will take place on 14 October 2026.

Following the publication of the DAOD 5039-2, Official Languages in the Workplace on 1 January 2025 and following the publication of RMC’s Official Languages Directive in May 2026, the administration takes the view that, as the LoW at RMC and CFC is English, staff meetings and central services are conducted primarily in English. Furthermore, whilst it appears that members of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) will receive services in the official language of their choice, services to public service employees are provided in the LoW, namely English, and RMC will endeavour to offer services in both official languages only where capacity permits.

7There has been a great deal of public commentary following these announcements, and the DND Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) has consequently initiated a review of the LoW. As part of this review, a team from the CHRO’s office, including the Director of Official Languages, will visit Kingston on 14 October 2026. The CMCFA wishes to ensure that the CHRO fully understands the potential implications of the LoW designation and that you have the opportunity to raise your concerns. Please let me know if you are interested in attending this meeting. The CMCFA will cover the travel expenses of its members who do not work at RMC and who wish to participate.

Please remember that our collective agreement recognises past practices. If you are affected by changes to RMC’s or CFC’s approach to official languages, please contact the Chair of our Grievance Committee, L Sangalli, at: sangalli@cmcfa-apcmc.ca, to discuss any potential grievances. Please also be aware that you can lodge a complaint with the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages.

Please address any questions or comments to the CMCFA President, Sylvain (Sly) Leblanc, at: leblanc@cmcfa-apcmc.ca.

Kind regards,

Sylvain (Sly) Leblanc