Employment and Social Development Canada 3-year accessibility plan - 2022

Alternate formats

Glossary

The definitions below are from the Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service of Canada unless we show another source.

About this plan

This accessibility plan applies to 2 regulated organizations: Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and the Canada Employment Insurance Commission (CEIC). ESDC administers the Employment Insurance Program on behalf of the CEIC. This means that the policies, processes and practices that ESDC uses to carry out its operations also apply to the CEIC.

Message from the Deputy Ministers

“We want you to imagine a Canada where we don’t leave anyone out. Where we seek out and celebrate disability diversity. Where we consider everyone’s needs from the beginning. A Canada where we are disability inclusive from the start. That’s the Canada we deserve. That’s the Canada we are creating – for everyone.”

Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion

We are proud to share Employment and Social Development Canada’s (ESDC) 3-Year Accessibility Plan, based on the Accessible Canada Act and Regulations. We developed this plan in consultation with our employees and clients with disabilities. The plan covers ESDC, including the operations of Service Canada and the Labour Program, and the Canada Employment Insurance Commission (CEIC). It is in keeping with the principle of “nothing without us.”

Our vision is to be a leader in public service accessibility and a place where everyone can fully participate. This plan is a major step towards realizing that vision. We know that barriers to accessibility exist in our policies, programs, services and work environment. This accessibility plan outlines the actions we will take to identify, remove and prevent barriers at ESDC.

Our plan is ambitious and we will need to work together and try new approaches to realize our vision. We are prepared to adapt in response to feedback from our employees, clients, stakeholders and members of the disability community. We want ESDC to become a place where everyone can benefit from an inclusive, barrier free environment that is accessible from the start.

To achieve this important goal, we will take action:

• We will increase the representation of persons with disabilities in our workforce. The public service as a whole made a commitment to hire 5,000 persons with disabilities by 2025. This commitment was made in the Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service of Canada. ESDC’s target is to hire 1,187 persons with disabilities by 2025
• We will enhance our approach to workplace accommodations. Our goal is to provide seamless, timely and integrated solutions. We will also support the implementation of the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport
• We will ensure our buildings, offices and facilities are accessible for employees, clients and the public. We will also ensure that our hybrid work environment does not create new barriers for employees with disabilities
• We will ensure that all types of information and communications products are usable by all. We will also ensure that we represent persons with disabilities fairly and accurately in speech, writing and images
• We will ensure that everyone has the knowledge to consider accessibility from the start of the procurement process. This will help avoid delays and ensure that ESDC buys accessible goods and services
• We will involve persons with disabilities in the design of programs and services. This will help address barriers in our service channels: in-person, phone and online
• We will review our human resources systems, data, policies and practices. We will remove bias and promote an inclusive workplace where everyone can participate fully and equitably
• We will provide accessibility training to all employees
• We will enhance leadership on accessibility at ESDC and make decisions using evidence. We will encourage branches and regions in our department to develop their own accessibility plans to complement this one. These plans will respond to concerns from their employees and clients

As we implement this plan, we will monitor and report on our progress every year. We will also keep listening to you and the feedback you have on this plan and the barriers you face. We know the success of this plan will require major organizational change. Each of us must take steps to remove barriers in our workplace and in the programs and services that we deliver.

As senior leaders at ESDC, we will set the bar high for how an accessible and inclusive ESDC should look and feel. We will know that we have made real progress when persons with disabilities tell us the change has become real for them.

Accessibility is everyone’s business at ESDC, and we are confident that we can do this important work together.

Andrew Brown
(He/him/his)
Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development

Cliff Groen
(He/him/his)
Business Lead, Benefits Delivery Modernization, Employment and Social Development Canada

Sandra Hassan
(She/her/hers)
Deputy Minister of Labour and Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development

Tina Namiesniowski
(She/her/hers)
Senior Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development

Lori MacDonald
(She/her/hers)
Senior Associate Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development and Chief Operating Officer for Service Canada

Jean-François Tremblay
(He/him/his)
Deputy Minister of Employment and Social Development and Chairperson of the Canada Employment Insurance Commission

General

Executive summary

The Accessible Canada Act was passed in 2019 and aims to achieve a barrier-free Canada by 2040. This involves identifying and removing the barriers that prevent persons with disabilities from participating fully and equally in society.

The Act requires Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and the Canada Employment Insurance Commission (CEIC) to prepare and publish an accessibility plan every 3 years. These plans must show how we will identify, remove and prevent barriers to accessibility for our employees and the people we serve. For the purposes of this plan, ESDC includes the CEIC.

More than 6 million Canadians over the age 15 have at least 1 disability, and that number is rising as our population ages. In addition, almost 3,000 employees at ESDC identify as having a disability.

Despite how common disability is in Canada, discrimination and systemic barriers to equal opportunity and inclusion still exist. In 2020, we started consulting our employees and clients with disabilities on this plan. Many told us that they had experienced barriers in the workplace and in accessing our programs and services.

The effects of these barriers are real. They can limit employees’ contributions to their workplace, affect their careers and cause significant personal pain. In addition, when barriers prevent Canadians from accessing ESDC programs and services, this can affect their health, wellbeing and quality of life.

We know we have work to do to eliminate accessibility barriers at ESDC. We would like to go even further—our vision is to be a leader in public service accessibility.

This is our department’s first accessibility plan. We developed it in the spirit of “nothing without us.” This means that persons with disabilities must be involved in the design of policies, plans, programs and services.

We consulted the following groups between 2020 and 2022:

• employees with disabilities and managers
• clients with disabilities
• front-line staff
• outreach officers and service delivery partners

Our plan is broad and responds to the expectations of our clients and employees for bold, meaningful change. It lays the foundation for building an accessible and inclusive workplace, and for providing services to Canadians that are barrier free.

The ESDC Accessibility Plan outlines the actions we will take over the next 3 years to improve accessibility. We will identify, remove and prevent barriers in 6 of the priority areas set out in the Act:

• employment
• built environment
• information and communication technologies (ICT)
• communication, other than ICT
• procurement of goods, services and facilities
• design and delivery of programs and services
• transportation (does not apply to ESDC’s mandate at this time)

We also added 2 more priority areas that reflect what we heard in our consultations:

• workplace culture (added)
• data, research and analysis (added)

The activities in this plan will help us achieve the following 8 desired results. Together, they will create a barrier-free ESDC.

• ESDC recruits and retains employees with disabilities, advances their careers, and provides timely access to accommodations
• Persons with disabilities have barrier-free access to ESDC buildings, offices and facilities
• Existing and new information and communication technologies (ICT) products, services and content are accessible for all users
• ESDC communications are accessible and written in plain language
• Accessibility criteria are considered when buying goods, services and facilities, and products include accessibility features where appropriate
• In-person, phone and online client services are accessible for persons with disabilities
• Everyone at ESDC has the knowledge and skills to make the department barrier free for persons with disabilities
• ESDC makes evidence-based decisions to identify, remove and prevent barriers to accessibility

We will develop internal implementation plans to ensure each activity is completed. These plans will include timelines, resources and leads who are accountable for making progress on each activity over the next 3 years. We will also develop a performance measurement framework to monitor our desired results and to report on progress.

We recognize that becoming a more accessible department is a journey, not a destination. The preferences and needs of persons with disabilities will continue to evolve. Improving accessibility at ESDC needs to be an ongoing effort at both the organizational and individual levels.

Our message is clear: at ESDC, accessibility is everyone’s business. We will do what it takes to ensure every employee has the knowledge, tools and desire to make ESDC barrier free for all Canadians.

Our department

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) includes Service Canada and the Labour Program. ESDC also administers the Employment Insurance Program on behalf of the Canada Employment Insurance Commission (CEIC). The department has a workforce of over 40,000 employees. Our mission is to build a stronger and more inclusive Canada, and to support Canadians in living productive and rewarding lives.

We are proud to deliver a wide range of programs and services that help Canadians move through life's transitions. For example, we:

• provide seniors with basic income security
• support unemployed workers and help them return to work
• help students to fund their post‑secondary studies and to find a job
• help parents who are raising young children
• provide programs and income support to persons with disabilities and their families

Service Canada is the department's single point of access for some of our most well known programs. These include:

• Employment Insurance (administered on behalf of the CEIC)
• Old Age Security
• Canada Pension Plan
• Social Insurance Number
• Passport Program

In 2021 to 2022, our call centres answered close to 2 million requests for general information through 1 800 O-Canada. They also handled over 7 million requests for program-specific information. Our front‑line staff helped 8.6 million people at 317 Service Canada Centres. And our clients accessed ESDC programs and services over 145 million times on Canada.ca.

As part of our commitment to offer Canadians high quality and timely services, we are working hard to respond to evolving client needs. We aim to deliver secure, easy‑to‑use and accessible services in all of our service channels.

With regard to the administration of the Employment Insurance Program, the Commissioners of the CEIC consult with organizations and individuals affected by the program to ensure their views are considered.

ESDC is also one of the largest employers in the federal public service. We are committed to creating a diverse, respectful and inclusive workplace, where employees can fully participate. In 2022, Canadians recognized ESDC as one of Canada's Top 100 Employers and one of Canada's Best Diversity Employers.

The Accessible Canada Act

The Accessible Canada Act is a law passed in 2019. Its purpose is to make Canada barrier free for persons with disabilities by January 1, 2040. Federal organizations must identify, remove and prevent barriers to accessibility. To do so, they must review their policies, programs, practices and services in the following priority areas:

• employment
• built environment
• information and communication technologies (ICT)
• communication, other than ICT
• procurement of goods, services and facilities
• design and delivery of programs and services
• transportation

The Act requires that organizations prepare and publish accessibility plans every 3 years, and include persons with disabilities in the process. Organizations must also set up a feedback process. The purpose is to receive and address feedback on their plans and accessibility barriers.

Finally, organizations must publish progress reports. These must describe the actions the organization has taken to remove barriers using the feedback it has received from clients and employees.

For the purposes of developing accessibility plans, ESDC will identify and remove accessibility barriers that may exist in its operations, including those of Service Canada and the Labour Program, and the operations of the CEIC.

Developing the ESDC Accessibility Plan

“The principle of ‘nothing without us’ needs to be at the heart of this plan. The voices and experiences of people with all types of disabilities should guide our work. The ESDC Employees with Disabilities Network is proud to have played an active role in developing the department’s first accessibility plan. Our members share the common goal of creating an inclusive and accessible workplace at ESDC.”

Kimberley Sauve, Chair, and Darren Deneumoustier, Champion, ESDC Employees with Disabilities Network

For the purposes of this plan, ESDC includes the CEIC.

We began preparing the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) Accessibility Plan in summer 2019 when the Accessible Canada Act became law. Our first step was to set up the ESDC Accessibility Office (EAO). The EAO is responsible for preparing, publishing and monitoring the plan.

The EAO worked closely with the ESDC Employees with Disabilities Network and senior managers to raise awareness of the Act. In 2020, the EAO held engagement sessions with employees and managers to hear their views on accessibility barriers at ESDC. They worked together to develop solutions for removing them.

We used the findings from those sessions to create our vision, guiding principles and an interim accessibility plan. Our senior management committee approved the interim plan in fall 2021. We also used a number of other sources:

• more than a dozen sessions with senior leaders and managers, and regular meetings of the Director General Working Group on Accessibility
• insights from subject matter experts, such as ESDC and university researchers
• advice from relevant ESDC committees, such as the Service Advisory Committee and the Inclusive Service Advisory Network
• findings from the annual Service Canada Client Experience Survey
• findings from virtual focus groups and in-depth interviews with clients with disabilities
• client feedback sent to Service Canada’s Office for Client Satisfaction
• other surveys and data sources, including:
  • 2021 Survey on Accessibility at ESDC
  • 2021 ESDC Employee Pulse Survey
  • 2021 Onboarding Employees with Disabilities at ESDC Project
  • 2019 and 2020 Public Service Employee Survey
  • 2017 Canadian Survey on Disability
  • ESDC workforce demographic reports

We updated our plan in summer 2022, but our vision and guiding principles have not changed. This new accessibility plan reflects over a year of experience implementing activities to remove barriers and integrating lessons learned.

Consultations

“We need fundamental change to make accessibility and inclusion the default at ESDC.”

Participant, 2020 engagement sessions

Our plan: priority areas, desired results and activities

The ESDC Accessibility Plan is a 3-year plan (2022 to 2025) that proposes solutions to the accessibility barriers identified in our consultations. The plan contains:

• 8 priority areas (6 are from the Accessible Canada Act)
• 8 desired results that we will achieve by 2040
• 68 activities that will help achieve the desired results

We will develop internal implementation plans to ensure activities are completed on time. The plans will include resources and leads who are accountable for making progress on each activity over the next 3 years. Some activities are within ESDC’s direct control. For other activities, ESDC will work closely with federal partners to complete them. These partners include:

• Public Service Commission
• Public Services and Procurement Canada
• Shared Services Canada
• Statistics Canada
• Treasury Board Secretariat

Accountability and governance

We created the Director General Working Group and the Assistant Deputy Minister Committee on the ESDC Accessibility Plan. They oversee many aspects of accessibility at ESDC and play a leadership role in developing and implementing this plan.

The Employees with Disabilities Network also plays an important role in shaping accessibility at ESDC. It is an employee-led forum, and many members are employees with disabilities who have lived experience with accessibility barriers. ESDC relies on the Network for meaningful engagement and leadership when implementing accessibility initiatives. The Network has an executive champion and a deputy minister champion, who act as agents for change. They influence and engage other senior leaders and ensure that decisions are made with accessibility in mind.

Finally, the ESDC Portfolio Management Board, chaired by the Deputy Minister, is responsible for approving the ESDC Accessibility Plan and progress reports. Members of the Board play a key role in enabling accountability, stewardship and transparency on accessibility.

Monitoring and reporting

This 3-year plan includes a wide range of activities. We expect these activities will reinforce and embed the changes that will benefit clients and employees with disabilities.

To implement the plan, we will work with persons with disabilities, stakeholders and governance committees. We will update the plan to reflect lessons learned, new research and best practices.

In accordance with the Accessible Canada Act and Regulations, we will publish an updated accessibility plan every 3 years. Progress reports will be published every year in between. In our progress reports, we will present an overview of the feedback we have received and how we have used it.

The ESDC Accessibility Office (EAO) will be responsible for monitoring the plan to ensure accountability for results. We will develop a performance measurement framework, drawing on the Results Framework for the Accessibility Strategy for the Public Service of Canada. We will use this framework to report on progress.

Conclusion

The Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) Accessibility Plan, which includes the Canada Employment Insurance Commission, sets out how we will identify, remove and prevent barriers for persons with disabilities. As one of the largest employers and service delivery organizations in the federal public service, ESDC will continue to lead by example.

In our first year of implementing our interim plan, we have achieved a lot and have learned a number of lessons. These will help us achieve the results of this new 3-year plan.

Perhaps our most valuable lesson has been how important it is to involve persons with disabilities in the design and development of new programs, services and policies. When we make our department more accessible for persons with disabilities, we make it a better place to work. We are also able to improve the accessibility of our programs and services for everyone.

This plan is just a starting point for making ESDC barrier free. To be truly inclusive, we need to build accessibility into everything we do, including our meetings, documents, hiring practices, and products and services. Every employee in our organization has a role to play, from our senior managers to our front-line staff. At ESDC, accessibility is everyone’s business.