What is life like for Anglophone communities in Montreal and the rest of Quebec?
As well as other cities in Canada where French is the dominant vernacular? Do they need to learn French anyway?
I am an anglophone living in Quebec, just west of Montreal.
Here in Quebec, most of the signs on stores, road signs, written public announcements, etc; are in the French language. Sometimes, they also contain some English, but French is always the rule. Thusly, it is essential that one possess at least a certain level of French-language comprehension, in order to be able to interpret things in day-to-to-day life.
Outlying areas away from bigger cities tend to have lower concentrations of anglophones, as a general rule. They are more heavily francophone, with many people not speaking, or having a difficult time speaking, English.
While French is the language of the majority here, there are certainly small areas within Quebec which are “pockets” of primarily anglophones. For example, the western end of Montreal island, or “West Island” is a large, predominantly English-speaking (anglophone) “bubble” within Quebec. Many anglophones live there, and it’s a predominantly English-speaking area, in contrast with the rest of the province. There are anglophone schools, anglo churches, anglo businesses and indeed, if you’re a unilinigual anglophone in Quebec, this kind of area would probably be the best for you, as you’d have the least trouble dealing in an unfamiliar language, as possible in Quebec (well – except for the pesky signs!)
Most employers in Quebec will demand that applicants be fluently bilingual (written / spoken / understood), unless it’s certain you’ll be dealing in one language or another all of the time. It’s rare, in my experience, to find a job where you aren’t required to have at least some level of bilingualism.
In short, if you want to live in Quebec, as an anglophone, I’d say you MUST have at least a medium-level comprehension of the French language.
I am an anglophone, my husband is a francophone.
Hope this sheds some light for you!