The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I have the honour to inform the Senate that the Clerk of the Senate has received a certificate from the Registrar General of Canada showing that Manuelle Oudar has been summoned to the Senate.

[English]

Hon. Manuelle Oudar, of Quebec City, Quebec, introduced between Hon. Marc Gold, P.C., and Hon. Clément Gignac.

[Translation]

Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, on behalf of the opposition and the Senate Conservative caucus, I am pleased to rise today to welcome our newest colleague, Senator Manuelle Oudar, representing the senatorial division of La Salle, in Quebec.

[English]

Senator Oudar, we are all looking forward to working with you in your new role as a senator.

Colleagues, as I was preparing these remarks, I was pleased to find an interesting link between Senator Oudar and her predecessor, the Honourable Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu. Both have been actively outspoken about combatting violence against women. The recent retirement of Senator Boisvenu has left big shoes to fill here in the Senate on this issue. I find solace in knowing that Senator Oudar will be a voice in our chamber and on Parliament Hill for this very important cause.

Senator Oudar is a respected lawyer, leader and advocate for justice. She has spent more than three decades in the Quebec public service, serving her community through her involvement with various organizations, mentorship programs and initiatives.

Senator Oudar, I wish you well in the upper chamber. I look forward to hearing your perspective in the context of your experiences and background. These are very interesting times, in which our role of due diligence is crucial, as it may offer hope to the good people across our country.

Please know that members of the Conservative caucus look forward to working in collaboration with you on ways to improve the lives of Canadians by working and fighting for their best interests.

[Translation]

Once again, on behalf of the opposition and the Conservative caucus, I wish you a warm welcome to the Senate of Canada and to the Senate family.

Hon. Raymonde Saint-Germain: Honourable senators, I am deeply moved today to welcome a colleague from Quebec, the Honourable Manuelle Oudar. Her career, especially in the Quebec public service, has been no less impressive than her engagements and experience outside her work, which will serve her well as she performs her parliamentary duties.

Throughout her career, Senator Oudar has shown her talent for statecraft and public service. Whether as head of the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la Sécurité du travail, the Quebec regulatory body responsible for promoting labour rights and obligations, or within the various ministries where she worked, she successfully managed to meet the high demands of governance and to deliver quality services to the public, while respecting their rights, needs and dignity.

She has always respected and promoted social justice, especially when it comes to reducing economic and identity-related inequalities, fighting violence against women, and ensuring that young people have access to the most inclusive workforce possible. Her sensitivity to the changing nature of the labour market has directly influenced many young women, future leaders, whom she guided as a mentor.

[English]

Senator Oudar also proved herself to be a woman of action. In 2020, then the CEO of Quebec Labour Standards, Equity, Health and Safety in the Workplace Commission, or CNESST, she successfully led the organization of more than 5,000 employees through the biggest health crisis of the early part of this century.

Committed to helping the public, she embodied the importance of social dialogue, notably by overseeing the production of the first practical guide to labour standards in the Quebec construction industry. This guide became a cornerstone, not only for the protection of workers, but also for supporting the industry’s economic activity. Testifying to its success, 26 evolving guides have been produced in a very short duration of time, allowing Quebec to avoid economic paralysis while protecting its workers.

Under Senator Oudar’s leadership, the commission was awarded the United Nations Public Service Award in 2022.

Considering her past achievements, Senator Oudar’s values, skills, expertise and accomplishments, as well as her keen understanding of the constitutional responsibilities enshrined in our institutions, are outstanding assets for her tenure as a parliamentarian.

I have no doubt that the continuation of her public service from the executive branch to the legislative one will be as smooth and successful as her career has been so far, and to that I can personally speak as well.

Senator Oudar, I speak for all members of the Independent Senators Group as I congratulate you on your appointment and express how delighted we are to have you as a colleague.

[Translation]

Welcome to the Senate of Canada.

Hon. Pierre J. Dalphond: Honourable senators, as the new representative of the Progressive Senate Group, I am pleased to join the other leaders in welcoming Senator Manuelle Oudar. What is more, the first welcome I am extending in this new position is to a colleague with a remarkable career in my province’s public service.

An accomplished jurist, she held legal affairs management positions at various Quebec ministries, including the Ministry of Employment and Social Solidarity, the Ministry of Family, the Ministry of Education, Recreation and Sport, and the Ministry of Culture, Communications and Status of Women. In Quebec, we like ministries with long names. Over the years, she also demonstrated management skills that earned her positions such as Assistant Deputy Minister of Networks at the Ministry of Education, Recreation and Sport and Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Labour.

In 2016, she became the president and CEO of the Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du travail du Québec. She then oversaw its merger with two other commissions, when it became the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail, or CNESST, an organization made up of about 5,000 people.

In 2022, CNESST received a United Nations award for its efforts in favour of gender equality, economic justice, equity in the labour market, empowering women and reducing inequality and wage gaps.

It’s no surprise, then, that last year our colleague was awarded the Prix Femmes de mérite by the Women’s Y Foundation of Montréal, in the public service sector. I should also point out that our colleague is an accredited mediator, which is likely to prove a very useful quality when it comes to building consensus in committee.

On a personal note, she is also the co-CEO of a family of seven children, along with Pierre Reid, who is here with us today and who is also a Quebec lawyer and senior civil servant.

[English]

In conclusion, our new colleague brings a wealth of experience that we will soon have the opportunity to share.

Welcome, Senator Oudar, to your new home — the upper house of Parliament — where you will work for the well-being of Canadians along with talented colleagues representing the rich diversity of our country.

[Translation]

Welcome, senator.

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I wish to draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of Pierre Reid, spouse of the Honourable Senator Oudar, her children Yarie Oudar Conte Reid and Samuel Reid, her parents Simone Pietri and Gérard Oudar, and her sisters Elisabeth and Valérie. They are accompanied by other members of the Honourable Senator Oudar’s family.

On behalf of all honourable senators, I welcome you to the Senate of Canada.