2024 Accessibility Progress Report

Alternate formats

You can request alternate formats of this report, for example:

• print or large print
• American Sign Language (ASL) / Langue des signes québécoise (LSQ) / Indigenous Sign Language video
• Braille
• audio format
• electronic format compatible with adaptive technology intended to assist people with disabilities.

To request alternate formats of this report:

• call us at 1-833-854-7628
• email us at accessibility.standards-normes.accessibilite.info@canada.gc.ca

We posted our Accessibility feedback form in December 2022. Canadians can use this form to share feedback on:

• our Accessibility Plan
• accessibility barriers faced when trying to access our services and information, on any of our platforms.

We received 10 submissions from November 2023 to September 2024. Canadians submitted their feedback in different ways:

• 2 used the feedback form
• 7 sent us feedback by email
• 1 sent us feedback using our Contact form.

7 of the submissions came from external organizations and 3 came from individuals.

The submissions mostly included suggestions on the accessibility of our website and public documents. The submissions covered the following areas:

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)

Communication with us (other than ICT)

Internal feedback

The internal feedback received this year was positive. The organization will continue to monitor and seek internal feedback. When feedback is received, it will be addressed in a timely manner. Based on past feedback, we continued to work with providers to minimize delays for future technology accommodations.

Employment

Barrier 1: Inflexible and often inaccessible application and hiring procedures within Government.

Action 1: Applicants can submit documents to us in their preferred format. Completed in 2023.

Action 2: We will provide the name and position of the person to contact for more information about the job poster. Completed in 2023.

Action 3: We will provide accommodations throughout the application and hiring process. Ongoing.

• Since 2023 we are systematically providing accommodations throughout the application and hiring processes.
• Our employees are all required to complete the training on “Addressing Disability Inclusion and Barriers to Accessibility.”

Barrier 2: Not reaching out to potential candidates with disabilities.

Action: Our human resources department will fine-tune the recruitment strategy to broaden our talent pool to include more people with disabilities. Ongoing.

• Our hiring managers are asked to consider staffing options to support employment equity criteria when establishing their hiring strategy. This includes hiring from existing public service pools of candidates having self-identified as people with disabilities.

Barrier 3: Using outdated or inappropriate language when speaking about people with disabilities.

Action 1: We will continue to educate employees, especially those who are new to the organization, about disability awareness and appropriate terminology. Training to be finalized in 2025.

• Our employees are all required to complete the training on “Addressing Disability Inclusion and Barriers to Accessibility,” offered by the Canada School of Public Service. Accessibility Standards Canada created a Lexicon to raise awareness of certain terms related to people with disabilities and to harmonize their use in internal and external communications, as well as with the public, in both official languages. This document is shared with all employees and with every translation request made to an external service provider.

Action 2: We will make inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility allyship (IDEA) as an organization-wide competency. Ongoing.

• The training on accessibility, disability inclusion and plain language was integrated in our list of mandatory trainings for all employees in 2023.
• Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport (the Passport) is one of the flagship initiatives under the Public Service Accessibility Strategy, and a key project under the Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund. The Passport directly applies the social model of disability, which focuses on removing barriers in society that exclude people with disabilities. The social model recognizes that people with disabilities may face barriers in the workplace such as inaccessible buildings, systems, or digital content. These barriers vary according to personal circumstances and job responsibilities. Workplace accommodation tools and support measures can help overcome these barriers and create a level playing field for all employees.

Barrier 4: Transitioning from education to employment for youth with disabilities comes with many challenges.

Action: Add accessible employment for youth with disabilities transitioning from school to work as a priority area for our research funding program. Completed in 2023.

The built environment

Barrier 1: Certain elements of the office may not yet be fully accessible to everyone, whether that be employees or guests.

Action 1: We will implement recommendations from employees taking part in the pilot return to the office project. Completed in 2023.

Action 2: We will feature our facility to other government departments (OGDs) and agencies to encourage a higher level of accessibility in future fit ups or new builds. Ongoing

• Our office tours have highlighted accessibility features of our office space that make workplaces more accessible to employees with disabilities. OGDs have taken advantage of our online 3D virtual tour if they have not been able to tour our space in person.
• 2 out of our 4 quarterly newsletters this year proactively informed stakeholders and partners about our online 3D virtual tour of our workspace. This promotion has now been added to our newsletter template to be included in every issue.
• As a complement, the office tour available on our website was also promoted on our social media platforms throughout the year.

Barrier 2: Employees and guests are unable to locate the office in the shopping mall (initially listed under the “Transport” area).

Action: We will provide clear instructions and have an employee meet guests at the main entrance and guide them to the office entrance. Completed in 2023.

Barrier 3: Insufficient parking or lack of accessible parking spaces nearby (initially listed under the “Transport” area).

Action: There is a commercial parking lot next to the office. We will ask management to add additional accessible parking spaces requiring a tag. Completed in 2023.

Information and communication technologies (ICT)

Barrier 1: Lack of knowledge or experience in the latest accessibility technology, which is always evolving.

Action: IT employees have the resources they need to provide Accessible ICT. Ongoing.

• ICT Training is part of learning plans of employees providing ICT or advice on ICT.

Barrier 2: Procurement of software that is sometimes incompatible with the needs of people with disabilities.

Action 1: We will coordinate software procurement in consultation with the intended user. Ongoing.

• In 2024, 11 users requested and received specialized software.

Action 2: During the onboarding process, we ask employees if they need Accessible ICT (modified for greater clarity). Ongoing.

• In 2024, we hired 14 new employees. Every employee is asked whether or not they require Accessible ICT when onboarded.

Communication, other than ICT

Barrier: Employees and stakeholders sometimes experience inaccessible information and cannot complete their work.

Action 1: The communications team will stay informed about new communications tools that could help us provide accessible information to employees. Ongoing.

• We participate in several communities of practice related to accessibility, including:
  • Community of Practice for Accessible Communications
  • Interdepartmental Accessibility Community of Practice
  • Community of Practice on Plain Language
  • Interdepartmental Social Media Working Group
  • Government of Canada Web Priorities Working Group
• We worked with various internal and external partners, including experts, to solve accessibility challenges with our website and to answer specific questions related to the accessibility of communications. This includes testing solutions with assistive devices and technologies such as a Braille display, screen readers and text magnifier.

Action 2: We will monitor feedback and consult stakeholders on which format(s) and support(s) would meet their needs (modified for greater clarity). Ongoing.

• We made targeted efforts to actively offer alternate formats of call-to-action content and high value content on our web pages (sign language videos, PDF, and Word alternate formats, etc.)
• The organization also created sign language videos for all its call-to-action content on social media. All of our social media campaigns now use ASL and LSQ to reach the Deaf and hard of hearing communities.

Action 3: We will continue to provide employee training on plain language and making documents accessible. Ongoing.

• In 2023, plain language training became mandatory for all our employees. We offered training to all staff in fall 2023.
• We are in the process of identifying a provider to deliver the mandatory training that will be offered to all new employees moving forward.
• We continue to encourage employees to write documents in plain language to a level 8 or lower on the Flesh-Kincaid scale (or equivalent on the Scolarius scale).
• We revised the suite of accessible templates created for employees to ensure they continue to meet the highest level of accessibility and best practices, and employees' needs.
• We learned from a 2023 partial review of our website and from comments made by the public. This includes:
  • evaluating new content with an accessibility lens
  • developing summaries of complex documents in plain language
  • translating into sign language videos call to action content and high value content
  • improving the overall user experience of our web pages
• We launched a website user experience review in summer 2024 to assess and improve our website’s user experience and information architecture. We are seeking strategic recommendations to enhance the site’s usability and organization, ensuring it meets the evolving needs of our various audiences, including people with disabilities.

Procurement of goods, services, and facilities

Barrier: Accessibility is not always considered during the procurement process due to lack of knowledge and understanding.

Action 1: We will equip employees involved in the procurement of accessible products and services with knowledge to understand the needs of people with disabilities. (Action combined with action 2 below).

Action 2: We will seek services from providers who have values in line with ours whenever possible. 

For greater clarity and to combine with the previous action, this action was modified for:

We will embed accessibility considerations in our procurement processes. Ongoing.

• All of our procurement contracts take into account accessibility considerations to respect our mandate.

Action 3: Ensure all employees have the right equipment and products to be at their best. Replace items that are not accessible if possible (modified for greater clarity). Ongoing.

• Our organization created an Organizational Health and Safety Committee. The Committee continuously discuss the removal of barriers highlighted by employees. This proactive approach will ensure that barriers are treated quickly, as opposed to waiting for a callout to staff.

Action 4: We will include information on the Accessible Canada Act, disability, accessibility, and human rights in our onboarding training. Completed in 2023.

Design and delivery of programs and services

Barrier: Shared information is not always provided in formats that meet the needs of all users.

Action 1: We will include accessibility requirements for accommodations in the Standards Development Operating Procedures used by employees to support the technical committees (reworded for better accuracy). Ongoing.

• All letters of offer shared with new technical committee members included a request to provide details of accommodation requirements. Reminders have been shared throughout the standards development process to ensure changes in accommodation needs are addressed. Members of technical committees have provided positive feedback about the organization’s positive and inclusive environment. Surveys indicate that the Standard Development team meets technical committee members' initial and evolving accommodation requirements.

Action 2: We will provide guidance materials in plain language. Ongoing.

• We continue to ensure that documentation is in plain language, this includes call for proposals, forms, and templates for reporting.
• We added a new requirement in funding agreements so that recipients are now required to publish at the end of their project an executive summary of their research report in plain language.

Action 3: We will publish standards in accessible formats. Ongoing.

• We continue to increase the accessibility of documents for technical committee members.
• We published all our standards in 3 accessible formats: PDF, Word, and HTML. Additionally, we provided a plain language summary in English and French in PDF, Word, and HTML. We provided the same plain language summary in ASL and LSQ.
• We improved the process to fill out forms for our technical committee members. We continue to use DocuSign to maintain the accessibility for all users, including those using a screen reader.

Action 4: We will conduct future surveys with employees, technical committee members and the Board of Directors. Through the survey results, we will see how we can improve accessibility in the design and delivery of our programs and services. Ongoing.

• Based on the feedback received from the survey, the Grants and Contributions program team updates the documentation to ensure accessibility. This includes, for example, creating new additional format of budget form to provide more options for applicants.
• We will continue to collect feedback and conduct future surveys with employees, technical committee members, the Board of Directors, and Grants and Contributions recipients to measure the satisfaction level.

Transport

Our Accessibility Plan initially identified 2 barriers for the “Transport” area. It was later determined that those barriers fell in the “Built Environment” area, and they were moved under that area. As a result, the organization does not have any barriers to address for the transport area.