Annual Report on the Administration of the Access to Information Act, 2021 to 2022
On this page
- Executive summary
- 1. Introduction
- 2. Organizational structure
- 3. Delegations
- 4. Policies, guidelines, procedures and initiatives
- 5. Performance reporting
- Requests and consultations: Total volume
- Total requests received and completed
- Requests by calendar days taken to complete
- Timeframes
- Timeframe Monitoring
- Pages processed and disclosed
- Exemptions and exclusions
- Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations
- Reporting on Access to Information fees for the purposes of the Service Fees Act
- 6. Complaints, Investigations and Court Actions
- 7. Training and awareness activities
- Annex A: Delegation orders
- Annex B: Statistical reports
Executive summary
Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), including the Labour Program and Service Canada, strives to build a stronger and more inclusive Canada, to help Canadians live productive and rewarding lives, and to improve the quality of life for all Canadians. Many of the federal government’s largest and most well-known programs and services are provided by the Department in fulfillment of this broad mandate.
As a federal institution, ESDC is subject to the Access to Information Act and the department is pleased to submit this report as part of the legislative requirements of the Act. This report describes ESDC’s performance as related to access to information and reflects our commitment to openness and transparency, as foundational principles for how we deliver modern, open and ethical government operations.
Overview of results
This year’s results show ESDC has returned to its previous high levels of performance with compliance rates nearing those achieved pre-pandemic. The 2021 to 2022 reporting period was again impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as the Department continued to evolve its approach towards a hybrid working environment, featuring predominantly digital work and workplaces. Notwithstanding the significant changes in play, ESDC achieved strong results when responding to requests by Canadians for access to information about our programs.
The following is a high-level overview of the Department’s key access to information results during the reporting period:
- Requests received (1,163 declined slightly (- 1%) from the previous year
- Requests completed within legislated timelines increased significantly from the previous year from 63% to 84%
- Pages processed increased by a little over 1% to 93,092
- Outstanding requests from the previous year fell from 411 to 358 and for the second year in a row, more requests were closed than were received
- All mandated proactive disclosure requirements were met
- 19 Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) investigations were determined to be well-founded, representing only 1.6% of all active requests received in the year
- 33,453 ESDC employees were trained in Stewardship of Information and Workplace Behaviours (SIWB) course, and
- 25,370 employees completed the online Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP): It’s everybody’s business course
The detailed results that follow help to illustrate the Department’s ongoing commitment to open and transparent government. The actions taken to support these principles contribute to building the modern, effective and good government that Canadians expect and deserve.
1. Introduction
Presentation of the report
ESDC is pleased to present to Parliament its annual report for the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year. Section 94 of the Access to Information Act requires the head of a federal institution to submit an annual report to Parliament on the administration of the Act.
The Service Fees Act requires a responsible authority to report annually to Parliament on the fees collected by the institution. Information regarding fees collected under the Access to Information Act, and in accordance with the requirements of Section 20 of the Service Fees Act, is available in Section 5 of this report.
About ESDC
ESDC, which includes the Labour Program and Service Canada, delivers many federal programs and services. Given the broad scope of its mandate, it is among the largest and most decentralized federal institutions in the Government of Canada. Each day, ESDC interacts with thousands of Canadians by delivering services and programs that play important roles in their lives. Canadians expect high-quality, easy-to-access, and secure services that are responsive to their needs, whether they are interacting online, through call centres, or in person.
ESDC’s programs and services affect Canadians throughout the course of their lives. For example, the Department assists parents who are raising young children, helps students finance their post-secondary education, provides income support to unemployed Canadians, and pension income to seniors. ESDC delivers many of the Government of Canada’s flagship programs, such as the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program, Employment Insurance (EI), Old Age Security (OAS), and the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). In the fiscal year 2021-22 the Department delivered $100 billion in benefits directly to individuals and organizations, which represents nearly 5% of Canada’s Gross Domestic Product.
In addition, during this reporting period, ESDC stood at the forefront of Canada’s efforts to mitigate the social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This included Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) and targeted support for students and seniors, among others.
The Labour Program contributes to social and economic well-being by fostering safe, healthy, fair and inclusive work environments, as well as cooperative workplace relations in workplaces falling under federal jurisdiction. The Labour Program also supplies labour relations mediation services, enforces minimum working conditions, promotes decent work and fosters respect for international labour standards. As with other parts of the Department, the Labour Program responded to the pandemic with agility and flexibility.
The Department’s service delivery arm, Service Canada, provides Canadians with a single point of access to ESDC programs and benefits, as well as to other Government of Canada programs and services.
About the Access to Information Act
The Access to Information Act provides Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and any individual or corporation present in Canada a right to access records of government institutions that are subject to the Act. This right is subject to limited and specific exemptions and exclusions, and in accordance with the principle that government information should be available to the public. The Government of Canada brought forth new legislative requirements under the Act in 2019, mandating departments to, among other things, proactively publish frequently requested information to further increase transparency and openness.
ESDC remains committed to delivering on its legislative obligations.
2. Organizational structure
Corporate Secretary and Chief Privacy Officer
ESDC’s Corporate Secretariat Branch is responsible for the Department’s access to information and privacy operations, issuing and managing privacy management policy, providing privacy advice and guidance, and privacy operations in the National Capital Region. These functions are carried out by ESDC’s ATIP Operations and the Privacy Management Division (PMD).
The Branch is led by the Corporate Secretary who is ESDC’s designated Chief Privacy Officer, the Department’s functional authority on all privacy matters and for the implementation of the privacy management framework. The Chief Privacy Officer’s responsibilities include providing strategic privacy advice and recommendations, maintaining ESDC’s privacy management program, and monitoring compliance to the relevant statutory obligations, policies and standards for privacy. In addition to this report, the Corporate Secretariat Branch reports separately on the administration of the Privacy Act.
Access to Information and Privacy Operations Division
The ATIP Operations team carries out the Department’s legislated requirements under the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act. It leads and advises on the processing of all ESDC requests under the Access to Information Act, performs line-by-line reviews of records requested under the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, and delivers training and awareness sessions to departmental employees on the administration of the acts. The director of ATIP Operations is ESDC’s designated ATIP coordinator. Approximately 45 ATIP Operations employees were dedicated to processing requests during in 2021 to 2022.
The day-to-day administration of the Access to Information Act is a collaborative endeavour between ATIP Operations and the Department’s network of branch liaison officers, who support this work by undertaking searches, collecting records and making recommendations. The liaison officers play an intermediary role between ATIP analysts and subject matter experts located across ESDC. Finally, the Division continues to provide departmental leadership on the 2019 amendments to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act.
In addition to processing requests under the Access to Information Act, ATIP Operations contributed to other departmental activities. For instance, ATIP Operations staff frequently reviewed departmental material for proactive disclosure (for example, contracts, position reclassification, travel and hospitality expenses), informal requests (for example, audits and administrative investigations) and Open Government publications (for example, datasets) to identify sensitivities, such as personal information and cabinet confidences. While these activities are not accounted for within this report’s statistical information, such activities are an important and growing part of strengthening transparency and accountability.
Service agreement with the Canadian Accessibility Standards Development Organization
ESDC has a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to provide access to information and privacy services for the Canadian Accessibility Standards Development Organization (CASDO), an independent departmental corporation in the Department’s portfolio. CASDO was established under the Accessible Canada Act and is mandated to help realize a Canada without barriers, on or before January 1, 2040.
COVID-19 operational impact
ESDC quickly took measures to support Canadians at the outset of the global COVID-19 pandemic while employees transitioned to remote work. This challenging environment contributed to an initial subsequent lower ATIP compliance rate in 2020 to 2021 and a sizeable backlog in ATIP requests. This backlog was carried over into the current fiscal year.
The pandemic also prompted the Department to transition, ever more efficiently, to new electronic processes including e-post and the use of digital signatures. In addition, additional resources in support of ATIP operations have been provided to help reduce the backlog of requests and restore the compliance rate to pre- pandemic levels of performance.
3. Delegations
Section 73 of the Access to Information Act empowers the head of an institution to delegate any of the powers, duties or functions assigned by these acts to employees of that institution.
The Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion is responsible for the purposes of the Access to Information Act, and the Department’s enabling legislation—the Department of Employment and Social Development Act.
The approved delegation orders are reproduced in Annex A.
4. Policies, guidelines, procedures and initiatives
Access to Information Activities and Initiatives
ESDC continued its ATIP modernization initiative by implementing digital solutions as part of an ongoing shift to a largely paperless and remote office environment. The modernization initiative is focussed on standardizing processes and procedures across the Department’s decentralized ATIP model to process ATI requests more efficiently. The work is a priority and an important pillar towards ongoing compliance with the legislation. The Department is now processing the vast majority of requests digitally.
5. Performance reporting
The following section provides key statistics and analysis on ESDC accomplishments in the previous 4 fiscal years and how the Department contributed to the Government’s agenda in terms of access to information. Figure 3 through 5 display a 4-year comparison to highlight Access to Information Act performance trends. Detailed statistical reports for the Act are found in Annex C.
The number of requests received during the current fiscal year held broadly steady from the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Compliance rates however, improved significantly from the previous year returning to a level that is similar to that achieved in pre-pandemic years.
Requests and consultations: Total volume
During the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year, ESDC experienced a small decrease (1%) in access to information requests, from 1,177 requests in 2021 to 2021 to 1,163 in the 2021 to 2022 reporting period.

Text description for figure 1
Year | Requests |
---|---|
2018 to 2019 | 1,409 |
2019 to 2020 | 1,396 |
2020 to 2021 | 1,177 |
2021 to 2022 | 1,163 |
In 2021 to 2022, Access to Information Consultation requests increased slightly, back to similar levels in pre-pandemic years.

Text description for figure 2
Year | Requests |
---|---|
2018 to 2019 | 222 |
2019 to 2020 | 309 |
2020 to 2021 | 137 |
2021 to 2022 | 189 |
Activity | 2018 to 2019 | 2019 to 2020 | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Formal requests received under the Access to Information Act | 1,409 | 1,396 | 1,177 | 1,163 |
Requests completed during the reporting periodFootnote 1 | 1,509 | 1,302 | 1,234 | 1,176 |
Number of pages processed | 118,818 | 133,982 | 92,080 | 93,092 |
Number of requests completed within legislated timeframes (including extensions) | 1,305 | 1,094 | 772 | 990 |
Number of requests completed beyond legislated timeframes | 204 | 208 | 462 | 186 |
Proportion of requests that were responded to within legislated timeframes | 87% | 84% | 63% | 84% |
Complaints to the Information Commissioner | 35 | 52 | 19 | 36 |
Total requests received and completed
During the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year, ESDC received 1,163 requests under the Access to Information Act, a 1% decrease from the previous fiscal year, during which the Department received 1,177 requests. This continues a trend in recent years where ESDC has observed a decrease in the number of requests received, although this year’s decrease is much lower than previous years. This decrease can be explained, in part, by a business process that, with the consent of the client, moves erroneously submitted Access to Information Act requests into more accurate Privacy Act access requests.
While the number of requests closed during the reporting period decreased compared to the previous year, more requests were closed than were received. This is due to “carryover” requests from the 2020 to 2021 fiscal year being completed in the 2021 to 2022 reporting period.
The number of complaints made to the Information Commissioner, which had declined during the first year of the pandemic, returned this year to a pre-pandemic level. Complaints against the Department, as a proportion of requests made and completed, remain relatively low.

Text description for figure 3
Year | Total Request Received | Total Requests Completed |
---|---|---|
2018 to 2019 | 1,409 | 1,509 |
2019 to 2020 | 1,396 | 1,302 |
2020 to 2021 | 1,177 | 1,234 |
2021 to 2022 | 1,163 | 1,176 |
Requests by calendar days taken to complete
ESDC processed 52% (609) of all requests received (1,163) under the Access to Information Act within the first 30 days of receipt, up from the previous year when we processed 46% within the first 30 days. The increase is directly attributable to the winding down of the operational effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, improved efficiencies as a result of ATIP modernization efforts, and increased levels of resources, including human resources, dedicated to the administration of access to information by the Department.

Text description for figure 4
Year | 30 Calendar Days | 31-60 Calendar Days | 61 or more Calendar Days |
---|---|---|---|
2018 to 2019 | 866 | 232 | 411 |
2019 to 2020 | 673 | 240 | 389 |
2020 to 2021 | 569 | 152 | 513 |
2021 to 2022 | 609 | 235 | 332 |
Timeframes
The Department met legislated timelines for 990 requests, a compliance rate of 84%. This represents a significant increase compared to last year and a return to pre-pandemic rates of compliance. As a result, the Department was not only able to process, in a timely manner, those requests received during the year, for the first time since the onset of the pandemic, but also to begin to reduce the number of requests outstanding from the previous reporting period (the backlog) from 411 in 2020 to 2021 to 358 in 2021 to 2022.
ESDC was unable to meet legislated timelines for 186 requests during the fiscal year, a significant decrease compared to the previous year. Institutions may apply for an extension beyond the original 30-day statutory timeframe in cases where meeting the statutory date is not feasible due to the volume of pages to be processed, where consultation is required that could not reasonably be conducted within the initial 30 days, or where notice is given to a third party. During the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year, ESDC requested 371 extensions. Requesters were notified of delays.

Text description for figure 5
Year | Total Closed | Beyond timeframe | Within timeframe |
---|---|---|---|
2018 to 2019 | 1,509 | 204 | 1,305 |
2019 to 2020 | 1,302 | 208 | 1,094 |
2020 to 2021 | 1,234 | 462 | 772 |
2021 to 2022 | 1,176 | 186 | 990 |
Timeframe Monitoring
Except in certain circumstances, which allow for extensions, the Access to Information Act contains a statutory timeline of 30 calendar days (about 20 working days) to respond to requests. Given the legislated timeframes and ESDC’s commitment to respecting both the letter and spirit of the Access to Information Act, we continue to follow an established process and defined responsibilities as outlined in Table 2.
Roles and responsibilities | Description |
---|---|
Retrieval of relevant records and formulation of recommendations | Once a request is received, it is tasked to the relevant branches and/or regions, and the Offices of Primary Interest. The Offices of Primary Interest have eight working days to retrieve all responsive records and present them, along with any recommendations, to ATIP Operations. |
Line-by-line review of the responsive records | ATIP Operations has eight working days to complete a thorough line-by-line review of the records and to invoke any applicable exemptions and/or exclusions. |
Advance release notice | Key stakeholders receive a notification that the release package has been posted electronically on a secure internal website at least 4 working days prior to the scheduled release date. This mechanism allows all implicated parties to provide final comments prior to release. |
In support of timeframe monitoring, ATIP Operations provides a weekly report to senior management and at the ministerial level. These reports continue to help branches and regions monitor their access to information requests.
Pages processed and disclosed
During the reporting period, the Department experienced a 1% increase in the total number of pages of documents processed and a 4% decrease in the number of pages disclosed for requests under the Access to Information Act (please refer to Figure 6).

Text description for figure 6
Year | Pages Processed | Pages Disclosed |
---|---|---|
2018 to 2019 | 118,818 | 94,115 |
2019 to 2020 | 133,982 | 91,228 |
2020 to 2021 | 92,080 | 69,052 |
2021 to 2022 | 93,092 | 66,018 |
During the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year, the most common source of requests under the Access to Information Act was from the general public (439), closely followed by the business and private sector (388) with media requests (134) falling significantly from previous years.
Source | 2018 to 2019 | 2019 to 2020 | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Media | 429 (30%) | 584 (42%) | 335 (29%) | 134 (12%) |
Academia | 26 (2%) | 28 (2%) | 46 (4%) | 23 (2%) |
Business/Private Sector | 332 (24%) | 315 (22%) | 264 (22%) | 388 (33%) |
Organization | 140 (10%) | 50 (4%) | 62 (5%) | 79 (7%) |
Public | 350 (25%) | 374 (27%) | 321 (27%) | 439 (38%) |
Decline to identify | 132 (9%) | 45 (3%) | 149 (13%) | 100 (9%) |
Exemptions and exclusions
ESDC is one of the largest holders of personal information in the Government of Canada, which affects the frequency in which exemptions and exclusions are applied under the Access to Information Act.
Exemptions
The Access to Information Act allows, and in some instances requires, that information relating to the internal decision-making processes of government, national security, law enforcement or trade secrets be exempted and not released.
The following table (Table 4) outlines the most frequently invoked exemptions during the past 4 fiscal years. Due to the nature of ESDC’s mandate, most of the information under the Department’s control contains personal information about individuals and must be withheld under the mandatory exemptions set out in Section 19 (Personal Information) unless certain conditions are met. Section 21 (Advice) was another frequently applied exemption for the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year and continued to represent an important percentage of the total.
Section | 2018 to 2019 | 2019 to 2020 | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 |
---|---|---|---|---|
s. 19 - Personal information | 306 (25%) | 249 (23%) | 180 (21%) | 182 (20%) |
s. 16 - Law enforcement and investigations | 160 (13%) | 127 (12%) | 89 (10%) | 124 (14%) |
s. 20 - Third party information | 164 (13%) | 180 (17%) | 119 (14%) | 118 (13%) |
s. 21 - Advice and recommendations | 304 (25%) | 300 (28%) | 266 (31%) | 310 (34%) |
s. 24 - Statutory prohibitions against disclosure | 84 (7%) | 75 (7%) | 49 (6%) | 55 (6%) |
* Figures are rounded for readability purposes.
Exclusions
The Access to Information Act does not apply to information that is already publicly available, such as government publications (Section 68), and confidences of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada (Section 69), which require consultation with the Department of Justice. During the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year, we excluded records based on Section 69 for 142 requests.
Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations
In 2021 to 2022, ESDC received 189 (10,450 pages) external consultation requests, which originated from other Government of Canada institutions and organizations. This represents an increase compared to the previous fiscal year (137), as well as a significant increase in the number of pages reviewed compared to the 2020 to 2021 fiscal year (7,230). The figures for the current year mark a return to general pre-pandemic levels. This further illustrates the significant impact of the pandemic on ATIP operations in 2020 to 2021 with the current year reflecting a return to more ‘normal’ results.
The Department closed 191 requests for consultations of which 90 were completed within 30 days. The vast majority (132 or 69%) of those completed resulted in a recommendation to disclose the records in their entirety and 45 (24%) recommended to disclose in part.
Types of consultation | 2018 to 2019 | 2019 to 2020 | 2020 to 2021 | 2021 to 2022 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Consultations requests received under the Access to Information Act | 222 | 309 | 137 | 189 |
Pages reviewed under the Access to Information Act | 15,564 | 10,823 | 7,230 | 10,450 |
Access to Information Act Requests for Consultations Closed | 223 | 291 | 155 | 191 |
Access to Information Act Requests for Consultations Closed within 30 days | 141 | 170 | 24 | 90 |
Reporting on Access to Information fees for the purposes of the Service Fees Act
In 2017, the Government of Canada introduced the Service Fees Act, which replaced the User Fees Act. All government departments and agencies that charge fees for services are subject to this legislation, including ESDC.
The Service Fees Act requires a responsible authority to report annually to Parliament on the fees collected by the institution. Consistent with Treasury Board policy, fees charged pursuant to the Access to Information Act are to be reported in the Access to Information Annual Report. Consequently, ESDC is reporting these fees in this consolidated report.
General fees information
Table 6 provides information on the fees for processing requests filed under the Access to Information Act.
Category | Details |
---|---|
Fee-setting authority | Access to Information Act |
Fee Amount | $5 |
Service standard | Response provided within 30 days following receipt of a request; the response time may be extended pursuant to Section 9 of the Access to Information Act. Notice of extension is to be sent within 30 days after receipt of the request. |
Performance results |
|
Other information | In accordance with the Interim Directive on the Administration of the Access to Information Act, issued on May 5, 2016, and the changes to the Access to Information Act that came into force on June 21, 2019, ESDC waives all fees prescribed by the Act and Regulations, other than the $5 application fee set out in paragraph 7(1)(a) of the Regulations. |
Table 7 is a summary of the financial information for all Access to Information Act fees under the Department’s authority.
2020 to 2021 Revenue | 2021 to 2022 Revenue | 2021 to 2022 Total Cost of Operating the ProgramFootnote 4 |
2021 to 2022 RemissionsFootnote 5 |
---|---|---|---|
$4,660.00 | $4,735.00 | $3,173174.00 | $1,080.00 |
6. Complaints, Investigations and Court Actions
Individuals are entitled under the Access to Information Act to file a complaint related to their request for a record with the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC).
During the reporting period the Department was notified of 44 complaints by the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) an increase on the previous year’s figure. As with much of the data in this report, the number of complaints notified has returned to the level typically seen in pre-pandemic years. The OIC closed 36 complaints and determined 19 to be well founded. There were no court actions during the reporting period. Please refer to Table 8 for more information about the complaints.
Detail | Access to Information Act |
---|---|
Complaints | |
Total complaints received | 44 |
|
16 |
|
2 |
|
23 |
|
2 |
|
1 |
|
NA |
Investigations | |
Total findings received | 36 |
|
19 |
|
4 |
|
9 |
|
4 |
Court Actions | |
Number of court actions | 0 |
Note: The total number of notifications of complaints received and the total number of investigations with findings received will not necessarily be the same in a given fiscal year. Investigations could relate to complaints that were received by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner in a fiscal year prior the 2021 to 2022 reporting period.
7. Training and awareness activities
Access to Information training
ESDC has a comprehensive mandatory training program to increase knowledge and awareness of the stewardship of information. All employees are required to maintain valid certification in the Stewardship of Information and Workplace Behaviours (SIWB), which addresses access to information, information management, privacy, how to handle personal information, security and values and ethics. The course is a component of the Department’s Essential Training Curriculum and is delivered online. At the end of the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year, 33,453 employees held SIWB certification, which is valid for 2 years. In addition, the ATIP team were responsible for delivering targeted training for eight Departmental branch ATIP liaison officers as well to staff employed in the Department’s 3 ministerial offices.
In addition to SIWB, ESDC provided additional online courses in its training catalogue that were relevant to access. The course ‘Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP): It’s everybody’s business’ gives employees the knowledge required to protect, use and disclose personal information on a daily basis and teaches them to incorporate the principles of openness and transparency in their everyday work. During the last fiscal year, 25,370 employees completed the course.
New employees take the Doing Things Right and Doing the Right Thing: Putting the Departmental Code of Conduct into Action course, which has a significant access to information component. The course helps participants understand the application of ethical behaviour in the workplace and how to use that knowledge to guide them in their day-to-day work and decision-making, including their interactions with clients and colleagues. The course was taken by 24,861 employees during the 2021 to 2022 fiscal year.
Annex A: Delegation orders
Access to Information Act and Regulations: Delegation of Authority Department of Employment and Social Development
The Minister of Employment and Social Development, pursuant to section 11 of the Department of Employment and Social Development Act, hereby designates the persons, officers or employees holding the positions with Employment and Social Development set out in the schedules attached hereto, or the persons, officers or employees occupying on an acting basis those positions, to exercise the powers or perform the duties or functions of the Minister or to exercise or perform the powers, duties or function of the head of the institution, as specified in the attached schedules.
Original signed March 12, 2020 by the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment and Social Development
Department of Employment and Social Development
Description | Section | Delegated authority |
---|---|---|
Responsibility of government institutions | 4(2.1) |
|
Reasons for declining to act on request | 6.1(1) |
|
Notice – suspension | 6.1(1.3) |
|
Notice – end of suspension | 6.1(1.4) |
|
Notice (written notice for declining to act on a request) | 6.1(2) |
|
Notice where access requested/Giving access to record | 7 |
|
Transfer of request to another government institution | 8(1) |
|
Extension of time limits | 9 |
|
Notice where access refused | 10 |
|
Application fee waiver | 11(2) |
|
Language of access | 12(2) |
|
Access to alternate format | 12(3) |
|
Refuse access – Obtained in confidence | 13 |
|
Refuse access – Federal-provincial affairs | 14 |
|
Refuse access – International affairs and defence | 15 |
|
Refuse access – Law enforcement and investigations | 16 |
|
Refuse access – Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act | 16.5 |
|
Refuse access – Safety of individuals | 17 |
|
Refuse access – Economic interests of Canada | 18 |
|
Refuse access – Economic interest of the Canada Post Corporation, Export Development Canada, the Public Sector Pension Investment Board and VIA Rail Canada Inc. | 18.1 |
|
Refuse access – Personal information | 19 |
|
Refuse access – Third-party information | 20 |
|
Refuse access – Operations of Government | 21 |
|
Refuse access – Testing procedures, tests, audits | 22 |
|
Refuse access – Audit working papers and draft audit reports | 22.1 |
|
Refuse access – Solicitor-client privilege | 23 |
|
Refuse access – Statutory prohibitions | 24 |
|
Severability | 25 |
|
Information to be published | 26 |
|
Third-party notification | 27(1) |
|
Third-party notification – Extension of time limit | 27(4) |
|
Third-party notification – Notice of decision | 28(1) |
|
Third-party notification – Waive representations in writing | 28(2) |
|
Third-party notification – Disclosure of record | 28(4) |
|
Advising Information Commissioner of third-party involvement | 33 |
|
Right to make representations | 35(2) |
|
Access given to complainant | 37(4) |
|
Review by Federal Court – government institution | 41(2) |
|
Review by Federal Court – government institution-Respondents | 41(5) |
|
Notice to third party (application to Federal Court) | 43(1) |
|
Service or notice | 43(2) |
|
Notice to person who requested record | 44(2) |
|
Special rules for hearings | 52(2) |
|
Ex parte representations (Federal Court) | 52(3) |
|
Description | Section | Delegated authority |
---|---|---|
Transfer of request | 6(1) |
|
Search and preparation of fees | 7(2) |
|
Production and programming | 7(3) |
|
Providing access to records | 8 |
|
Limitations in respect of format | 8.1 |
|
Annex B: Statistical reports
Statistical report on the Access to Information Act
Name of institution: Employment and Social Development Canada
Reporting period: 2021-04-01 to 2022-03-31
Statistical Report Form
Section 1: Requests under the Access to Information Act
1.1 Number of requests
Details | Sub-total | Number of requests |
---|---|---|
Received during reporting period | 1,163 | |
Outstanding from previous reporting periods | 358 | |
|
98 | N/A |
|
60 | N/A |
Total | 1,521 | |
Closed during reporting period | 1176 | |
Carried over to next reporting period | 345 | |
|
262 | N/A |
|
83 | N/A |
1.2 Sources of requests
Source | Number of requests |
---|---|
Media | 134 |
Academia | 23 |
Business (private sector) | 388 |
Organization | 79 |
Public | 439 |
Decline to identify | 100 |
Total | 1,163 |
1.3 Channels of requests
Source | Number of requests |
---|---|
Online | 1,017 |
45 | |
95 | |
In person | 1 |
Phone | 1 |
Fax | 4 |
Total | 1,163 |
Section 2: Informal requests
2.1 Number of informal requests
Number of requests | ||
---|---|---|
Received during reporting period | 378 | |
Outstanding from previous reporting periods | 465 | |
|
460 | |
|
5 | |
Total | 843 | |
Closed during reporting period | 839 | |
Carried over to next reporting period | 4 |
2.2 Channels of informal requests
Source | Number of requests |
---|---|
Online | 378 |
0 | |
0 | |
In person | 0 |
Phone | 0 |
Fax | 0 |
Total | 378 |
2.3 Completion time of informal requests
Completion time | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 days | 16 to 30 days | 31 to 60 days | 61 to 120 days | 121 to 180 days | 181 to 365 days | More than 365 days | Total |
191 | 37 | 39 | 78 | 45 | 295 | 154 | 839 |
2.4 Pages released informally
Less than 100 Pages released |
100-500 Pages released |
501-1000 Pages released |
1001-5000 Pages released |
More than 5000 Pages released |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Pages released | Number of requests | Pages released | Number of requests | Pages released | Number of requests | Pages released | Number of requests | Pages released |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2.5 Pages re-released informally
Less than 100 Pages re-released |
100-500 Pages re-released |
501-1000 Pages re-released |
1001-5000 Pages re-released |
More than 5000 Pages re-released |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Pages re-released | Number of requests | Pages re-released | Number of requests | Pages re-released | Number of requests | Pages re-released | Number of requests | Pages re-released |
608 | 15,260 | 191 | 53,404 | 7 | 4,948 | 31 | 50,969 | 2 | 15,856 |
Section 3: Applications to the Information Commissioner on declining to act on requests
Number of requests | |
---|---|
Outstanding from previous reporting period | 0 |
Sent during reporting period | 0 |
Total | 0 |
Approved by the Information Commissioner during reporting period | 0 |
Declined by the Information Commissioner during reporting period | 0 |
Withdrawn during reporting period | 0 |
Carried over to next reporting period | 0 |
Section 4: Requests closed during the Reporting period
4.1 Disposition and completion time
Disposition of requests | Completion time | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 Days | 16 to 30 Days | 31 to 60 Days | 61 to 120 Days | 121 to 180 Days | 181 to 365 Days | More than 365 Days | Total | |
All disclosed | 33 | 106 | 50 | 21 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 220 |
Disclosed in part | 5 | 78 | 70 | 102 | 54 | 39 | 39 | 387 |
All exempted | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
No records exist | 92 | 84 | 21 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 206 |
Request transferred | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
Request abandoned | 289 | 17 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 11 | 14 | 342 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 429 | 289 | 144 | 135 | 58 | 60 | 61 | 1,176 |
4.2 Exemptions
Section | Number of requests |
---|---|
13(1)(a) | 3 |
13(1)(b) | 0 |
13(1)(c) | 19 |
13(1)(d) | 0 |
13(1)(e) | 0 |
14 | 55 |
14(a) | 3 |
14(b) | 0 |
15(1) | 12 |
15(1) - I.A.* | 4 |
15(1) - Def.* | 0 |
15(1) - S.A.* | 0 |
16(1)(a)(i) | 3 |
16(1)(a)(ii) | 0 |
16(1)(a)(iii) | 0 |
16(1)(b) | 5 |
16(1)(c) | 19 |
16(1)(d) | 0 |
16(2) | 82 |
16(2)(a) | 0 |
16(2)(b) | 1 |
16(2)(c) | 13 |
16(3) | 0 |
16.1(1)(a) | 0 |
16.1(1)(b) | 0 |
16.1(1)(c) | 1 |
16.1(1)(d) | 0 |
16.2(1) | 0 |
16.3 | 0 |
16.4(1)(a) | 0 |
16.4(1)(b) | 0 |
16.5 | 0 |
16.6 | 0 |
17 | 0 |
18(a) | 0 |
18(b) | 1 |
18(c) | 0 |
18(d) | 1 |
18.1(1)(a) | 0 |
18.1(1)(b) | 0 |
18.1(1)(c) | 0 |
18.1(1)(d) | 0 |
19(1) | 182 |
20(1)(a) | 1 |
20(1)(b) | 74 |
20(1)(b.1) | 0 |
20(1)(c) | 36 |
20(1)(d) | 3 |
20.1 | 4 |
20.2 | 0 |
20.4 | 0 |
21(1)(a) | 154 |
21(1)(b) | 140 |
21(1)(c) | 15 |
21(1)(d) | 1 |
22 | 0 |
22.1(1) | 0 |
23 | 21 |
23.1 | 0 |
24(1) | 55 |
26 | 3 |
- * I.A.: International Affairs
- Def.: Defence of Canada
- S.A.: Subversive Activities
4.3 Exclusions
Section | Number of requests |
---|---|
68(a) | 2 |
68(b) | 0 |
68(c) | 0 |
68.1 | 0 |
68.2(a) | 0 |
68.2(b) | 0 |
69(1) | 0 |
69(1)(a) | 3 |
69(1)(b) | 0 |
69(1)(c) | 0 |
69(1)(d) | 4 |
69(1)(e) | 4 |
69(1)(f) | 4 |
69(1)(g) re (a) | 50 |
69(1)(g) re (b) | 0 |
69(1)(g) re (c) | 24 |
69(1)(g) re (d) | 9 |
69(1)(g) re (e) | 16 |
69(1)(g) re (f) | 28 |
69.1(1) | 0 |
4.4 Format of information released
Paper | Electronic | Other | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
E-record | Data set | Video | Audio | ||
12 | 595 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
4.5 Complexity
4.5.1 Relevant pages processed and disclosed for paper and e-record formats
Number of pages processed | Number of pages disclosed | Number of requests |
---|---|---|
93,092 | 66,018 | 959 |
4.5.2 Relevant pages processed per request disposition for paper and e-record formats by size of requests
Disposition | Less than 100 pages processed |
100-500 pages processed |
501-1000 pages processed |
1001-5000 pages processed |
More than 5000 pages processed |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Pages processed | Number of requests | Pages processed | Number of requests | Pages processed | Number of requests | Pages processed | Number of requests | Pages processed | |
All disclosed | 205 | 2,438 | 13 | 2,856 | 1 | 615 | 1 | 4,048 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 271 | 7,838 | 85 | 19,000 | 21 | 13,704 | 8 | 15,470 | 2 | 18,689 |
All exempted | 6 | 181 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 2 | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 328 | 123 | 7 | 2,135 | 5 | 3,410 | 2 | 2,547 | 0 | 0 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 814 | 10,618 | 105 | 23,991 | 27 | 17,729 | 11 | 22,065 | 2 | 18,689 |
4.5.3 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for audio formats
Number of minutes processed | Number of minutes disclosed | Number of requests |
---|---|---|
0 | 0 | 0 |
4.5.4 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for audio formats by size of requests
Disposition | Less than 60 minutes processed | 60 - 120 minutes processed | More than 120 minutes processed | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Minutes processed | Number of requests | Minutes processed | Number of requests | Minutes processed | |
All disclosed | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
4.5.5 Relevant minutes processed and disclosed for video formats
Number of minutes processed | Number of minutes disclosed | Number of requests |
---|---|---|
0 | 0 | 0 |
4.5.6 Relevant minutes processed per request disposition for video formats by size of requests
Disposition | Less than 60 minutes processed | 60 - 120 minutes processed | More than 120 minutes processed | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Minutes processed | Number of requests | Minutes processed | Number of requests | Minutes processed | |
All disclosed | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Disclosed in part | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All exempted | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
4.5.7 Other complexities
Disposition | Consultation required | Legal advice sought | Other | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|
All disclosed | 43 | 0 | 0 | 43 |
Disclosed in part | 220 | 85 | 0 | 305 |
All exempted | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
All excluded | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Request abandoned | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Neither confirmed nor denied | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 272 | 87 | 0 | 359 |
4.6 Closed requests
4.6.1 Requests closed within legislated timelines
Number of requests closed within legislated timelines | 990 |
Percentage of requests closed within legislated timelines (%) | 84.18367347 |
4.7 Deemed refusals
4.7.1 Reasons for not meeting legislated timelines
Number of requests closed past the legislated timelines | Principal Reason | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Interference with operations/ Workload | External Consultation | Internal Consultation | Other | |
186 | 92 | 27 | 4 | 63 |
4.7.2 Requests closed beyond legislated timelines (including any extension taken)
Number of days past legislated timelines | Number of requests past legislated timeline where no extension was taken | Number of requests past legislated timeline where an extension was taken | Total |
---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 days | 23 | 13 | 36 |
16 to 30 days | 8 | 5 | 13 |
31 to 60 days | 8 | 8 | 16 |
61 to 120 days | 7 | 16 | 23 |
121 to 180 days | 7 | 9 | 16 |
181 to 365 days | 22 | 10 | 32 |
More than 365 days | 28 | 22 | 50 |
Total | 103 | 83 | 186 |
4.8 Requests for translation
Translation requests | Accepted | Refused | Total |
---|---|---|---|
English to French | 0 | 0 | 0 |
French to English | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Section 5: Extensions
5.1 Reasons for extensions and disposition of requests
Disposition of requests where an extension was taken | 9(1)(a) Interference with Operations/ Workload |
9(1)(b) Consultation |
9(1)(c) Third-Party notice |
|
---|---|---|---|---|
Section 69 | Other | |||
All disclosed | 25 | 0 | 26 | 5 |
Disclosed in part | 85 | 28 | 136 | 22 |
All exempted | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
All excluded | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Request abandoned | 14 | 3 | 7 | 7 |
No records exist | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Declined to act with the approval of the Information Commissioner | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 128 | 32 | 175 | 36 |
5.2 Length of extensions
Length of Extensions | 9(1)(a) Interference with Operations/ Workload |
9(1)(b) Consultation |
9(1)(c) Third-Party notice |
|
---|---|---|---|---|
Section 69 | Other | |||
30 days or less | 68 | 0 | 28 | 2 |
31 to 60 days | 34 | 0 | 15 | 28 |
61 to 120 days | 20 | 22 | 94 | 6 |
121 to 180 days | 2 | 10 | 35 | 0 |
181 to 365 days | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
365 days or more | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 128 | 32 | 175 | 36 |
Section 6: Fees
Fee type | Fee collected | Fee waived | Fee refunded | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Amount | Number of requests | Amount | Number of requests | Amount | |
Application | 947 | $4,735.00 | 216 | $1,080.00 | 0 | $0.00 |
Other fees | 0 | $0.00 | 0 | $0.00 | 0 | $0.00 |
Total | 947 | $4,735.00 | 216 | $1,080.00 | 0 | $0.00 |
Section 7: Consultations Received From Other Institutions and Organizations
7.1 Consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions and other organizations
Consultations | Other Government of Canada Institutions | Number of Pages to Review | Other Organizations | Number of Pages to Review |
---|---|---|---|---|
Received during the reporting period | 180 | 10,243 | 9 | 207 |
Outstanding from the previous reporting period | 25 | 3,004 | 1 | 6 |
Total | 205 | 13,247 | 10 | 213 |
Closed during the reporting period | 185 | 9,806 | 6 | 159 |
Carried over within negotiated timelines | 13 | 636 | 4 | 54 |
Carried over beyond negotiated timelines | 7 | 2,805 | 0 | 0 |
7.2 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other Government of Canada institutions
Recommendation | Number of days required to complete the consultation requests | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 days | 16 to 30 days | 31 to 60 days | 61 to 120 days | 121 to 180 days | 181 to 365 days | More than 365 days | Total | |
Disclose entirely | 38 | 38 | 33 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 130 |
Disclose in part | 0 | 8 | 19 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 44 |
Exempt entirely | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Exclude entirely | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Consult other institution | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Other | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
Total | 42 | 46 | 55 | 37 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 185 |
7.3 Recommendations and completion time for consultations received from other organizations outside the Government of Canada
Recommendation | Number of days required to complete the consultation requests | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 to 15 days | 16 to 30 days | 31 to 60 days | 61 to 120 days | 121 to 180 days | 181 to 365 days | More than 365 days | Total | |
Disclose entirely | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Disclose in part | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Exempt entirely | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Exclude entirely | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Consult other institution | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
Section 8: Completion time of Consultations on Cabinet Confidences
8.1 Requests with Legal Services
Number of days | Fewer than 100 pages processed | 100-500 pages processed |
501-1000 pages procesed |
1001-5000 pages procesed |
More than 5000 pages procesed |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | |
1 to 15 | 4 | 87 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 to 30 | 34 | 711 | 1 | 101 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
31 to 60 | 36 | 619 | 1 | 117 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
61 to 120 | 8 | 288 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
121 to 180 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
181 to 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
More than 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 82 | 1,705 | 2 | 218 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
8.2 Requests with Privy Council Office
Number of days | Fewer than 100 pages processed | 100-500 pages processed |
501-1000 pages procesed |
1001-5000 pages procesed |
More than 5000 pages procesed |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | Number of requests | Pages disclosed | |
1 to 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
16 to 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
31 to 60 | 6 | 78 | 1 | 121 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
61 to 120 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
121 to 180 | 4 | 164 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
181 to 365 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
More than 365 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 12 | 256 | 1 | 121 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Section 9: Investigations and Reports of finding
9.1 Investigations
Section 32 Notice of intention to investigate |
Subsection 30(5) Ceased to investigate |
Section 35 Formal Representations |
---|---|---|
44 | 4 | 14 |
9.2 Investigations and Reports of finding
Section 37(1) Initial Reports | Section 37(2) Final Reports | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Received | Containing recommendations issued by the Information Commissioner | Containing orders issued by the Information Commissioner | Received | Containing recommendations issued by the Information Commissioner | Containing orders issued by the Information Commissioner |
0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 36 | 0 |
Section 10: Court action
10.1 Court actions on complaints
Section 41 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Complainant (1) | Institution (2) | Third Party (3) | Privacy Commissioner (4) | Total |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
10.2 Court actions on third party notifications under paragraph 28(1)(b)
Section 44 - under paragraph 28(1)(b) |
---|
0 |
Section 11: Resources related to the Access to Information Act
11.1 Allocated costs
Expenditures | Amount | |
---|---|---|
Salaries | $2,645,896 | |
Overtime | $13,487 | |
Goods and Services | $513,791 | |
|
$506,106 | |
|
$7,685 | |
Total | $3,173,174 |
11.2 Human Resources
Resources | Person Years dedicated to Access to Information activities |
---|---|
Full-time employees | 31.560 |
Part-time and casual employees | 1.429 |
Regional staff | 0.000 |
Consultants and agency personnel | 2.343 |
Students | 0.000 |
Total | 35.332 |
Note: Enter values to three decimal places.
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