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Mandate

On February 8, 2007, Québec Premier Jean Charest announced the establishment of the Consultation Commission on Accommodation Practices Related to Cultural Differences in response to public discontent over reasonable accommodation. The Order in Council (PDF, 2 pages, 59 ko) establishing the Commission stipulates that it has a mandate to:

• take stock of accommodation practices in Québec;
• analyse the attendant issues bearing in mind the experience of other societies;
• conduct an extensive consultation on this topic; and
• formulate recommendations to the government to ensure that accommodation practices conform to the values of Québec society as a pluralistic, democratic, egalitarian society.

The Commission's mandate, as defined, could be broached in two ways, in a broad sense or in a narrower sense. The narrower sense would consist in confining the Commission's deliberations to the strictly legal dimension of reasonable accommodation. This notion, which stems from labour-related jurisprudence, designates a form of arrangement or relaxation aimed at combating the discrimination that a seemingly neutral norm can bring about in its effect, usually an infringement of an individual's right to equality. In general language, the meaning of the concept has gone beyond this legal definition and encompasses all forms of arrangements allowed by managers in public or private institutions in respect of students, patients, customers, employees, and so on.

The second approach to the Commission's mandate would be to perceive the debate on reasonable accommodation as the symptom of a more basic problem concerning the sociocultural integration model established in Québec since the 1970s. This perspective calls for a review of interculturalism, immigration, secularism and the theme of Québec identity. The Commission has decided to follow the second course with a view to grasping the problem at its sources and examining it from every angle.