Accessibility Standards Canada: 2021 to 2022 Departmental Results Report - Operating context

Accessibility Standards Canada is a departmental corporation. It was created under the Accessible Canada Act (Act). It has the mandate to help build a Canada without barriers. It will do this by:

• developing and revising accessibility standards;
• providing information, products and services about new and revised standards;
• supporting and conducting research on accessibility barriers; and
• sharing best practices for removing and preventing accessibility barriers.

The Act creates a framework for developing, reporting on and enforcing accessibility requirements. Accessibility Standards Canada is one of many federal organizations that will play a role in creating a Canada without barriers.

The Act established an Accessibility Commissioner, within the Canadian Human Rights Commission, and a Chief Accessibility Officer. The Act also expands the accessibility mandates of the following organizations:

• Canadian Transportation Agency;
• Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission;
• Canadian Human Rights Tribunal; and
• Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board.

Several provinces have accessibility legislation and others are developing it. The organization will work with provincial and territorial governments to encourage consistent standards.

The organization will also seek to collaborate with:

• persons with disabilities;
• representatives from disability organizations;
• Indigenous people, their organizations and governments;
• other federal departments and agencies;
• national and international bodies;
• other standard development organizations; and
• industry.

We put these measures in place to mitigate internal and external factors that could influence departmental results in 2021 to 2022 and beyond. They are:

• Internal
  • Capacity – We continued hiring until the end of the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year and will continue to do so into the next fiscal year.
• External
  • Credibility - Our dedicated Communications Team has planned, promoted, monitored, and analyzed our presence on social media and on our website. They also implemented their communications strategy, which includes keeping our stakeholders updated with news and events through a variety of communication platforms. We ensure that we remain relevant, and we educate and raise awareness about our mandate. We base our communications on a regular cycle to avoid stakeholder fatigue.
  • Research – We closely monitor research projects that we have funded to ensure results are delivered on time.
  • Collaboration – We develop and maintain relationships with our federal partners who are also working on accessibility. We have developed relationships with officials in the provinces and territories, to encourage their adoption of future standards, and to share information and best practices.
  • Covid-19 – We began holding in-person meetings at the end of the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year. This added a dynamic feel to our networking efforts. In the year ahead, as restrictions ease in some provinces, we plan to continue meeting in-person to facilitate networking and develop new collaborative relationships.