‘Lack of compassion’: Carney slams Air Canada CEO for English-only video following death of pilots

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney weighed in to the debate about Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau’s unilingual English video in which he offered his condolences for the loss of two pilots who were killed in Sunday’s crash at the LaGuardia airport.

“We proudly live in a bilingual country, and companies like Air Canada, particularly, have a responsibility to always communicate in both official languages regardless of the situation. I’m very disappointed as others are, rightly so,” Carney said on Wednesday morning.

The prime minister, speaking on his way to a Liberal caucus meeting, said that “particularly in these circumstances,” Rousseau’s video showed a “lack of judgment and lack of compassion.” One of the pilots killed, Antoine Forest, was a francophone Quebecer.

Quebec Premier François Legault went further, calling for Rousseau to resign as CEO.

In a video published on social media Monday, the day after the tragedy, Rousseau said it was a “very sombre day at Air Canada” and expressed his “deepest sorrow for everyone affected.”

“We know this is a difficult day for everyone, including all of us at Air Canada,” he said.

Rousseau only spoke English in the 3:45 minutes of the video, except for a “Bonjour” (hello) at the beginning at the beginning and “Merci” (thank you) at the end. The entire video, however, had subtitles in both official languages, English and French.

Still, the video sparked a wave of criticism in Quebec and Canada, given that the CEO had vowed to improve his French more than four years ago after another controversy.

As of Wednesday morning, the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages had received 561 complaints about Rousseau’s video, said spokeswoman Isabelle Arseneau who added the office is still determining if the complaints are admissible.

Rousseau has also been summoned to appear before a House of Commons committee of official languages before May 1. Carney said he would “follow his comments closely” as well as the comments of the board of directors which he expects “in due course.”

Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon said the unilingual video was not acceptable.

“Air Canada should know better,” he said. “They have a responsibility to communicate with the population as a whole and their stakeholders in both official languages.”

Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said Air Canada has obligations to follow under the Official Languages Act and parroted Carney’s view that the video showed a “lack of empathy.”

“I think that in those circumstances, the president of Air Canada needs to show that he understood the message and that he needs to make sure that himself and also the entire company abides by its obligation under the Act,” she said.

In a statement on X, Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet called on Rousseau to take a cold and hard look at whether he can stay on as CEO in these circumstances.

“In light of this sad and crass lack of respect toward the family and loved ones of the pilot from Coteau-du-Lac, Antoine Forest, a francophone Quebecer, Air Canada’s boss should very seriously ask himself if he hasn’t disqualified himself for the position he holds.”

It is not the first time that Rousseau has made headlines for his language skills.

In 2021, the CEO delivered a 26-minute speech in Montreal during which he spoke French for only about 20 seconds. Pressed by reporters after the fact, Rousseau claimed he was too busy running the company to learn French despite having lived in Quebec for 14 years.

“I’ve been able to live in Montreal without speaking French, and I think that’s a testament to the city of Montreal,” he told reporters.

Those comments caused a media storm in Quebec. Rousseau was dragged in front of a parliamentary committee, where he apologized for his comments and said it was not his intention to disrespect Quebecers and francophones across the country.

“Today, I am committed to improving my French, an official language of Canada and the language used in Quebec,” he said. “I reiterate Air Canada’s commitment to show respect for French and, as a leader, I will set the tone,” he added.

On Wednesday, Quebec’s Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette said Rousseau has a record of showing a lack of respect towards Quebecers and francophones.

“Game over,” he told reporters at the National Assembly.

National Post calevesque@postmedia.com

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