Canada’s defense minister has announced a review of a directive from 2025 that determines the languages used in military workplaces due to recent concerns. The Department of National Defense (DND) and the Canadian Armed Forces made changes in January 2025 regarding language requirements for internal activities and services like meetings and documents. Previously, units were categorized as English, French, or both.
According to a DND blog post in July, organizations and units in unilingual regions faced challenges meeting language obligations, leading to complaints and frustrations. The directive DAOD 5039-2, effective as of January 2025, aligned internal language requirements with the language designation of the office location under the Official Languages Act. This meant that only workplaces in designated bilingual regions, including New Brunswick, the National Capital Region, and parts of northern Ontario, were required to use English and French exclusively.
The changes did not impact communication with the public or military families. The military still promoted the use of both official languages to enhance inclusivity and uphold Canada’s linguistic diversity. The blog post attracted criticism from advocates and opposition parties, who viewed it as a weakening of French language protection within a major federal department.
In response to the concerns, Minister of National Defense David McGuinty stated that a review of workplace language designations would be conducted to assess the application of language-of-work requirements and ensure they align with operational needs and respect the language rights of the Defense Team. The timeline for this review was not specified. Subsequently, the Conservative Party urged McGuinty to revoke the changes promptly, emphasizing the importance of preserving the ability for Francophone members to work, lead, and progress professionally in French, regardless of their posting in predominantly English-speaking regions.