As a country with two official languages, Canada offers many opportunities for skilled immigrants who are proficient in English and French. Being able to communicate well in either language is vital in order to succeed in Canada. Being able to communicate well in both languages is better, and gives you a competitive edge over someone who speaks only one language.

The French Language

In 1867, French became one of the two languages in Canada that could be used in parliamentary debates as well as any Canadian court established under the Constitution Act. Its official status was later confirmed in 1969 under the first Official Languages Act which ensured that every Canadian would have access to federal services in the official language—English or French—of their choice.

Since then, numerous events and policies have continued to frame the French language as a fundamental and important characteristic of Canadian identity. The most notable is the Constitution of 1982 which clearly states the importance of language rights in the Canadian Charter of Rights of Freedoms. French, it would seem, is here to stay.

Nearly Ten Million Canadians Speak French

According to Statistics Canada’s 2011 Census of Population, approximately 10 million people reported being able to speak in French. Of these, 7.9 million people reported they speak French at home on a regular basis.

In recent years, there has been a slight decline in Canada of Canadians (outside of Quebec) who are fluent in French. However, with a strong government mandate, and companies continually seeking employees who are able to communicate in both English and French, there are still many reasons why you should consider improving or marketing your French language skills in Canada.

• Benefit # 1: It’s good for business: New Brunswick, one of the francophone regions of Canada, reports that its bilingual workforce has been a key reason why it has attracted big corporate players. As a result, being bilingual might be a key reason why you have a better chance of being hired in bilingual organizations.

• Benefit # 2: Being bilingual increases your opportunities in your job search: Statistically speaking, knowing more than one language increases the options you have within the job market. Whether it is because the workplace needs someone who can get into contact with a certain community or they have a special need for language-based service (i.e., interpretation and translation services), your French skills can become important in such situations.

• Benefit # 3: You can work in French-speaking parts of Canada. Relocating from a city in Canada that you’ve already settled in may not be an easy choice but there are opportunities to consider that may not only improve your job prospects, but also your quality of life. Speaking French will give you the freedom to work anywhere in Canada.

• Benefit # 4: You get paid more: If by any chance, you have found your bilingual opportunity, chances are you are paid more for it. As this Globe and Mail article points out:

• “[Canadian] men who know both languages earn an average income 3.8 per cent higher than those who know English only. Bilingual women earn 6.6 per cent more.”

• Benefit # 5: Being bilingual is better for your brain: The ability to speak more than one language is true for many skilled immigrants who settle in Canada. It is important to cultivate that ability, not only for the reasons listed above, but also because it might actually be good for your brain. As stated in this Guardian article:

• “A superior ability to concentrate, solve problems and focus are, of course, valuable in everyday life. But perhaps the most exciting benefit of bilingualism occurs in ageing, when executive function typically declines: bilingualism seems to protect against dementia.”

If you speak other languages in addition to English, you are off to a great start already.

For all of the benefits listed above, and more, consider adding French as one of your professional languages. Doing so will expand the possibilities of your career path in Canada.

Sigrid Roman is a General Instructor at Danforth Collegiate and Technical Institute Toronto.

If you speak both French and English, you're likely to earn more than your unilingual counterparts, according to a new study by researchers from the University of Guelph. And depending on where you work in Canada, you don't necessarily have to use a second language on the job to reap the financial rewards; merely knowing it can translate into a higher income.

Economics professors Louis Christofides and Robert Swidinsky found that men in Quebec who can speak both official languages earn an average income 7 per cent higher than those who speak only French, and bilingual women in Quebec earn 8 per cent more.

Meanwhile, in the rest of Canada, men who know both languages earn an average income 3.8 per cent higher than those who know English only. Bilingual women earn 6.6 per cent more.

But the researchers found that the rewards for actually using both languages on the job differ based on where in the country you work.

In Quebec, men who use their second language frequently at work can earn an additional 14 per cent (on top of the 3.8 per cent) than those who speak only French, and women can earn an additional 7 per cent. In the rest of Canada, however, it makes no significant difference whether English-speaking men and women use French at work or simply know the language; the financial benefits are about the same.

Dr. Christofides, a professor emeritus at the University of Guelph and also a dean of the faculty of economics and management at the University of Cyprus, says employers may be willing to pay workers extra simply for knowing a second language because bilingualism is associated with other attributes, such as a proclivity for education, cultural sensitivity or sophistication.

"They would see a [bilingual]person who is 'able' or 'sensitive' or 'has good social skills,' " he says. And as indicated by the lack of difference between the financial benefits of using and knowing French in English-speaking provinces, "the employer doesn't care that this person doesn't speak French as well. He has no use for it. But when ... you use this marker that the individual is bilingual, this marker is going to pick up all these extra qualities that the individual has."

In Quebec, however, the substantial financial reward for actually using English on the job reflects the demand for English in the marketplace, he says, particularly in the province's major cities. Moreover, jobs in Quebec that involve international business also value English.

To reach their findings, Dr. Christofides and Dr. Swidinsky examined data from Statistics Canada's 2001 Census, which, for the first time, asked respondents not only about their knowledge of the official languages but also the languages used at work. The latter data allowed the researchers to compare people's use of bilingual skills against their income. The results are adjusted for variables such as education, experience, regional differences and type of industry.

The researchers say the findings of their study, recently published in the journal Canadian Public Policy/Analyse de Politiques, have implications for bilingual policy in Canada.

"Efforts to promote French in the ROC [rest of Canada]should be continued, not so much because of the earnings advantage that bilingualism confers, but because it results in many social/cultural/political benefits, strengthening the fabric of Canadian society and serving as an example to countries torn by ethnic, religious and linguistic divisions," the study states.

On average, "the children in Quebec who learn English will experience a lot more additional earnings than the ones in the rest of Canada," Dr. Christofides says. But "in general and on average, we don't pick up an additional reward from the use of French in the rest of Canada."