Shared Services Canada 2023-24 Accessibility Progress Report
December 2024
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Shared Services Canada 2023-24 Accessibility Progress Report
Cat. No. P115-14E-PDF
ISSN 2817-8688
Publié aussi en français sous le titre :
Rapport d'étape sur l'accessibilité 2023-24 de Services partagés Canada
No. De catalogue P115-14F-PDF
ISSN 2817-8696
Message from the President
I am pleased to present the Shared Services Canada (SSC) 2023-24 Accessibility Progress Report. In 2023-24, SSC made significant progress on accessibility as an employer and a service provider to the Government of Canada. Our key achievements include:
- launching SSC’s Accessibility Planning and Reporting Group to help meet the planning and reporting requirements of the Accessible Canada Act and its regulations
- integrating accessibility into SSC’s corporate planning and reporting processes and tools
- supporting an increased representation of persons with disabilities in SSC’s workforce
- beginning to decrease accessibility barriers in key SSC enterprise processes
I am proud of our progress in building an accessible and inclusive workplace and I recognize that we still have more work to do to advance accessibility and inclusion at SSC. We are committed to learning and adjusting as we go forward.
SSC continues to consult with persons with disabilities to ensure our priorities and plans address accessibility barriers. I thank our employees and partners for their ongoing commitment to making SSC a more accessible and inclusive workplace for employees and a responsive service provider for our partner departments and clients. When everyone is included, we are stronger together.
Scott Jones
(he/him)
President
Shared Services Canada
Message from the Persons with Disabilities Champions
We are encouraged by the progress in the implementation of SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25.
SSC’s ongoing commitment to consult with persons with disabilities makes the department a more inclusive and accessible workplace for employees and a more responsive service provider for our clients. These consultations demonstrate SSC’s commitment to seeking the advice of employees and clients with disabilities when making decisions that affect them. It is an essential step to ensure everyone feels included, respected, and empowered in our workplace.
SSC’s accessibility feedback mechanism provides an ongoing opportunity for employees and clients to share feedback on barriers they have encountered. The department considers each feedback item and works to remove the barriers that have been identified.
As SSC’s Champions for the Persons with Disabilities Network, we encourage all employees and managers to read the Accessibility Progress Report and reflect on how we can all contribute to making our workplace more accessible.
Julie Hébert
Champion, Persons with Disabilities
Yana Hof
Champion, Persons with Disabilities
General
Alternate formats
Large print, print, braille, MP3 (audio), e-text, and DAISY formats are available on demand. You may use the contact information below to request a copy of Shared Services Canada’s Accessibility Plan, this Progress Report, or the feedback process description in an alternate format.
Accessibility feedback
If you have questions or comments about SSC’s Accessibility Plan, this Progress Report, or any barriers you may have experienced when dealing with SSC, we want to know.
Designated person to receive feedback
The Director, Accessibility Strategy and Governance is responsible for receiving feedback on the SSC Accessibility Plan or any issue or barrier related to accessibility you experience when dealing with SSC.
Important note: Accessibility feedback received by SSC will be acknowledged in the same format it was received, unless it was received anonymously.
How to contact SSC to provide accessibility feedback
Provide your feedback using any of the methods below.
- By email:
- sscaccessibility-accessibilitespc@ssc-spc.gc.ca
- Online:
- Provide feedback on accessibility at Shared Services Canada
- By telephone:
- (Toll-free) 1-833-970-3746
- By mail:
-
Director, Accessibility Strategy and Governance
Shared Services Canada
219 Laurier Avenue West, 3rd Floor
Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5J6
Progress Report
Background
About Shared Services Canada’s Accessibility Plan
Shared Services Canada published its first Accessibility Plan on December 16, 2022 to meet the requirements of the Accessible Canada Act (ACA) and the Accessible Canada Regulations (regulations). The commitments in SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25 form the baseline against which the department assesses its progress to become a more disability-inclusive and accessible organization. These commitments include:
- Goals - The long-term commitments we hope to accomplish by 2040.
- Objectives - Specific areas of progress we are targeting over the next 3 years.
- Key planned actions (KPAs) - Actions will we take to meet our objectives.
SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25 describes the department’s commitments toward our goal of achieving accessibility and disability inclusion in the seven priority areas identified in Section 5 of the Accessible Canada Act. The Plan also includes an eighth priority area—Culture—which SSC added. There are 33 KPAs across these 8 priority areas, which SSC is implementing as part of its first Accessibility Plan.
About the 2023-24 Accessibility Progress Report
This Progress Report describes SSC’s advancement towards accessibility and disability inclusion in the eight priority areas identified. The Report covers the period from April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024, and includes:
- Each priority area’s KPAs and a description of the progress made.
- A summary of the feedback received during the above-mentioned period and a description of how SSC has considered or resolved the feedback.
Key planned actions by priority area
Summary of progress
This year’s Accessibility Progress Report (APR) reviews progress against the 33 key planned actions (KPAs) identified in SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-2025. This review presents an opportunity to reflect upon the experience gained as the department begins to develop the next SSC Accessibility Plan for 2025-2028.
In the first two years of implementing SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25 the department has completed or made significant progress on 23 of the 33 KPAs and made some progress on the remaining 10 KPAs. Some longer-term KPAs may continue into the next SSC Accessibility Plan. Information on progress toward achieving each KPA is detailed in the following section of this report.
Design and Delivery of Programs and Services
Accessibility in the design and delivery of SSC programs and services means ensuring that the needs of persons with disabilities are intentionally and proactively included in the design, development and implementation of all enterprise IT services SSC provides to partner departments. This is done by collaborating with persons with disabilities and making accessibility and disability inclusion a priority in decision-making and key design and delivery practices.
SSC has nine KPAs for the Design and Delivery of Programs and Services priority area. The following describes SSC’s progress in these KPAs in 2023-24.
Increase accessibility awareness at the governance table (KPA 1.1)
Review existing governance to find ways to continually incorporate accessibility insights from feedback and consultations in decision-making.
Progress made
SSC considered accessibility and disability inclusion in a review of SSC’s internal policy and governance processes. This included providing accessibility training to SSC’s governance team to help identify and resolve potential barriers.
SSC created an Accessibility Planning and Reporting Group (APRG) in January 2024 to help meet the planning and reporting requirements of the Accessible Canada Act and its regulations. The APRG includes representatives from all SSC branches and SSC’s Persons with Disabilities Network. The APRG enables and supports SSC-wide communication and problem-solving on accessibility barriers and the actions needed to remove and prevent them.
Increase integration of accessibility requirements into practices (KPA 1.2)
Work with SSC’s departmental planning and reporting team to align and integrate accessibility requirements into existing planning and reporting systems, processes, tools, and workflows.
Progress made
SSC has integrated accessibility into the department’s planning and reporting processes and tools in several ways.
An accessibility section was included in the 2024-25 Departmental Plan and 2022-23 Departmental Results Report.
SSC’s 2023-24 branch business plans each included an accessibility section. SSC’s 2023-24 Integrated Business Plan incorporated reporting from every branch to provide a departmental summary of plans to improve accessibility across the department.
SSC has also started to include accessibility in our evaluation and assessments of new internal IT projects, tools, and services.
Create an accessibility testing policy (KPA 1.3)
Establish an accessibility testing policy starting with SSC’s enterprise user-centric services and technologies, SSC internal operational services and technologies, and technology-specific operational technologies.
Progress made
SSC started work on an accessibility testing policy in 2023-24. It was determined that the CAN/ASC – EN 301:2024 Accessibility requirements for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) products and services standard will be used for accessibility at SSC. The next steps include determining the scope and timing for a testing policy.
Increase representation of persons with disabilities in SSC’s workforce (KPA 1.4)
Increase representation of persons with disabilities in SSC’s workforce by using employment best practices so lived experiences contribute to the design and delivery of enterprise IT infrastructure and services.
Progress made
The number of persons in the SSC workforce who self-identify as persons with disabilities increased by more than 13 percent in 2023-24, from 541 on April 1, 2023, to 616 on April 1, 2024. SSC uses best practices for inclusion, such as integrating the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility PassportFootnote 1 into its onboarding process. SSC continues to use a bias and barrier-free checklist, an inventory of candidates, and recruitment targets for persons with disabilities. SSC attended four career fairs for students and graduates with disabilities and collected over 70 resumés during these events and shared them with SSC hiring managers.
With Carleton University, SSC promoted the ACT to Employ program for students and graduates. Three cohorts of the Federal Student Work Employment Program (FSWEP) students with disabilities participated and were hired in the summer of 2023. More than half of these participants were rehired as full-time employees.
Create strategies to improve accessibility capability (KPA 1.5)
Develop and implement strategies to enhance accessibility capacity at SSC in the following areas:
- Accessibility testing for SSC enterprise IT systems and services.
- Accessibility training for anyone responsible for the design and/or delivery of SSC’s programs and services.
Progress made
For accessibility testing, SSC’s Accessibility, Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) program continues to use a prototype requirements generator that enables technical authorities and government departments to incorporate the 2021 edition of EN 301 549 digital accessibility standards into the procurement of ICT.Footnote 2
For accessibility training, SSC consulted with its AAACT team and other accessibility experts to evaluate various learning products and determine how to embed accessibility into daily operations, including the following examples:
- Learning and Development employees completed formal training on document accessibility to meet or exceed accessibility standards.
- Facilitators received training on how to facilitate with accessibility in mind, followed by ongoing team discussions to provide a mechanism for continuous improvement.
All eLearning and Learning Management System team members completed formal training on web accessibility. At the same time, instructional designers took additional training on developing accessible online courses.
In the fiscal year 2023-24, SSC enabled the following accessibility training for employees:
- Accessibility Training Course for IAAP CPACC Certification
- Designing an Accessible User Experience
- Digital Accessibility Training Paths – Full Access
- Online Self-Paced Web and Digital Accessibility Courses – Full Access
- Web and digital accessibility courses
Decrease accessibility barriers in key SSC enterprise processes (KPA 1.6)
Review, in consultation with persons with disabilities, key SSC enterprise processes and practices to identify options and address accessibility gaps.
Progress made
SSC’s AAACT Program reviewed several internal SSC guides and tools to identify how they might include accessibility considerations.
Increase alignment of accessibility, security, privacy, and risk assessments (KPA 1.7)
Review practices and materials to identify opportunities to align accessibility assessments with security, privacy, and risk assessments.
Progress made
SSC is conducting accessibility testing using the Archer tool, which is used for project intake, tracking and oversight, assessment, authorization, and compliance.
Create a roadmap to address accessibility barriers in SSC (KPA 1.8)
Develop a roadmap to address accessibility barriers in SSC’s ICT for end users and employees.
Progress made
The first step in developing a roadmap to address accessibility barriers in SSC’s ICT for end users and employees is to establish the scope of these barriers. As described in KPA 1.3 above, SSC began an ICT Accessibility Baseline Research Project to measure how accessible user-interfaced ICT is at Shared Services Canada.
Assess demand for accessibility products and services (KPA 1.9)
Assess demand for the following services:
- AAACT services to ensure SSC continues to provide relevant support for departments who offer programs and services to Canadians and federal public service employees with disabilities, injuries, and ergonomic requirements. This includes a review of AAACT’s service offerings, tools, training, resources, and adaptive computer technologies.
- SSC’s Lending Library program to ensure SSC continues to offer relevant short-term accommodations, adaptive technology, services, and tools for public service employees with disabilities or injuries.
Progress made
SSC’s Customer Satisfaction Feedback Initiative (CSFI) includes a new question to measure partner departments’ satisfaction with the accessibility of the services provided by SSC.
The April 2023 CSFI Services Questionnaire was distributed to Chief Information Officers (CIOs) of SSC’s 44 partner departments. The questionnaire garnered a 100 percent response rate, and 66 percent of the CIOs commented on the accessibility question. In April 2023, SSC received a satisfaction rating of 3.77 out of 5.00 in response to the accessibility question. In October 2023, SSC received a satisfaction rating of 3.89 out of 5.00 for this question.
From the results, SSC learned that it could:
- Make more partner departments aware of its AAACT Program and SSC’s overall role in providing accessible services and technology.
- Improve the accessibility of documents and presentations supplied to partner departments.
- Communicate and explain the introduction and provision of accessibility features more clearly to ensure effective implementation.
The Lending Library Service Pilot, funded in partnership with the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, was completed on March 31, 2024. The pilot loaned over 1,600 pieces of adaptive technology and tools to more than 500 public service employees who experienced an injury or disability. The Lending Library’s expedited service delivery model and its associated inventory of equipment and tools are now being integrated into the AAACT Program on an ongoing basis.
Information and Communication Technologies
ICT accessibility ensures that people with and without disabilities can access the same information, perform the same tasks, and receive the same IT services.
Given SSC’s mandate, ICT accessibility strongly connects to the Procurement of Goods, Services and Facilities and the Design and Delivery of Programs and Services priority areas of this Accessibility Plan. This priority area, however, focuses on the accessibility of SSC’s corporate solutions, tools, and practices that SSC employees use to do their work.
SSC has six KPAs related to the ICT priority area. The following describes SSC’s progress in these KPAs in 2023-24.
Increase accessibility awareness at governance tables (KPA 2.1)
Review existing governance to identify opportunities to continually incorporate accessibility information from feedback and consultations into decision-making.
Progress made
Note: This KPA is shared between the Design and Delivery of Programs and Services and ICT priority areas. For additional progress updates, please refer to KPA 1.1 under Design and Delivery of Programs and Services.
SSC’s Chief Information Office (CIO) established a CIO governance structure consisting of two new governance committees: The CIO Project Steering Committee and the Departmental Architecture Committee. SSC’s Accessibility, Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology Program (AAACT) is represented on these two committees and presentations made to these committees are now accessible.
Increase the visibility of accessibility in key management processes (KPA 2.2)
Integrate accessibility into SSC’s Enterprise IT Procurement and Corporate Services Branch’s annual business planning and reporting.
Progress made
The annual branch business plan for SSC’s Enterprise IT Procurement and Corporate Services Branch now includes an accessibility section outlining how accessibility is integrated into its key functions, including human resources and workplace services, procurement and providing IM/IT services for SSC employees.
Create accessibility training strategies (KPA 2.3)
Develop and deploy training strategies to build accessibility competencies for anyone responsible for the design and/or delivery of SSC’s corporate ICT solutions, tools, and practices.
Progress made
SSC established a framework and approach to develop an Accessibility Training Strategy. The approach will identify key result areas (KRAs) for accessibility training and map the KRAs to available training and employee roles. It will also address a lack of accessible ICT tools and solutions to support language assessment training.
Decrease accessibility barriers in corporate processes (KPA 2.4)
Review key SSC corporate processes and practices with persons with disabilities to identify and address accessibility gaps.
Progress made
SSC’s accessibility feedback mechanism identified the following barriers in corporate processes and practices:
- Accessibility issues with software.
- Challenges obtaining sign language interpretation for meetings.
- Etiquette and disability inclusion culture of virtual meetings beyond providing sign language interpretation.
- SSC’s IT Service Desk service delivery over the telephone presents barriers, such as the hold music, poor audio quality and lack of non-verbal interaction options.
SSC took the following actions to address the above barriers:
- Provided information to SSC developers on steps to improve software accessibility in collaboration with relevant vendors.
- Provided information to the feedback requester on obtaining interpretation services for their meetings.
- Shared information on best practices for virtual meetings.
- Enlisted the feedback requester’s participation in a text-based chat channel pilot with SSC’s IT Service Desk.
Decrease accessibility barriers in the hybrid work environment (KPA 2.5)
Collect accessibility feedback from SSC employees on their hybrid work environment experience and take corrective action where necessary.
Progress made
SSC’s accessibility feedback mechanism helps gather information on barriers to hybrid work environments and facilitates resolutions. SSC’s Corporate Accommodations group and the Human Resources Service Desk also collect feedback and questions from SSC employees on the hybrid work environment, including accessibility.
SSC regularly presents to the Government of Canada’s Deputy Ministers Accessibility Group on the accessibility of ICT in the hybrid work environment.
Increase awareness and usage of accessibility job aids (KPA 2.6)
Develop and adopt a plan to increase SSC employees’ use of the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport, AAACT, and Lending Library programs.
Progress made
SSC implemented several training and educational activities to support the use of the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport:
- The GC Workplace Accessibility Passport is included in letters of offer, the Hiring and Onboarding Guide, and the new employee orientation sessions.
- An automatic reply from SSC’s Duty to Accommodate Centre of Expertise (DTA CoE) generic inbox provides reference to guidance on the DTA process, including the Passport.
- Presentations by the DTA CoE include information on the Passport.
SSC used several communication methods to increase awareness of the services provided by its AAACT program to all federal government departments and their employees, including Internet and intranet web pages, social media posts, and SSC’s internal and partner-facing email bulletins.
For the Lending Library, the AAACT IDEA (Inclusivity Diversity, Equity and Accessibility) Research Project was launched to advance knowledge and improve the design of workplaces and related systems to include persons with disabilities. SSC partnered with the Office of Public Service Accessibility at TBS, Employment and Social Development Canada, the Canada School of Public Service and McMaster University to determine how SSC’s AAACT Program can expand and optimize its Lending Library services so that all federal government employees with disabilities can quickly and easily access the resources, workplaces, systems and digital content.
Procurement of Goods, Services and Facilities
Accessibility in procurement means meeting the broadest set of user needs possible from the start of the process. This minimizes the need for accommodations.
SSC has three KPAs related to the priority area of Procurement of Goods, Services, and Facilities. The following describes SSC’s progress on these KPAs in 2023-24.
Increase awareness of the industry’s readiness to provide accessible solutions (KPA 3.1)
SSC will contact suppliers to better understand the industry’s readiness to provide accessible digital communications, workplace support and enterprise resource planning solutions.
Progress made
SSC and Public Services and Procurement Canada developed a draft Request for Information (RFI) to engage suppliers on ICT accessibility in procurement.
Collaborate on a new ICT accessibility standard (KPA 3.2)
Liaise with other GC organizations, including TBS and Accessible Standards Canada, on a planned new GC ICT accessibility standard that includes implementation related to SSC’s mandate.
Progress made
The AAACT Program advises GC partners on incorporating the European standard EN 301 549:2021 Accessibility requirements for Information and Communication Technologies into ICT procurements and procurements with an ICT component.
The Accessibility Triage Team (ATT) advises SSC on incorporating the European standard EN 301 549:2021 Accessibility requirements for Information and Communication Technologies into ICT procurements and procurements with an ICT component.
SSC’s AAACT Program advised on 168 procurements, non-competitive contracts, and consultations in 2023-24, providing advice to SSC and 31 other GC organizations. This represents a 59% increase from the previous year, 2022-23, when there were 106 procurements, non-competitive contracts, and consultations, with advice provided to SSC and 25 other government departments.
Business owners and contracting authorities are learning to ensure that goods and services purchased with ICT components conform to the EN 301 549 standard. SSC recommends a flexible approach that gives suppliers time to understand and conform to EN 301 549 standards and commit to regular accessibility conformance testing against this standard.
Increase accessible products/services monitoring and reporting (KPA 3.3)
Establish a formal process to monitor and report progress on the procurement of accessible ICT. This includes capturing the number of procurements subject to SSC’s procurement governance review, including ICT accessibility.
Progress made
SSC established a formal process to monitor and report progress on the procurement of accessible ICT, subject to SSC’s procurement governance review. SSC is working towards establishing a formal process to monitor and report progress on procuring accessible ICT for all other procurements not subject to SSC’s procurement governance review. SSC’s framework and tools for the procurement of accessible ICT are aligned with the internationally recognized EN 301 549 standard.
Accessibility indicators were provided to the Procurement Systems and Data Management team to be included in an upcoming Procure-to-Pay electronic procurement system update. Accessibility indicators will be reviewed and updated as accessibility reporting requirements evolve.
SSC is working with technology vendors to remediate deficiencies in technologies procured by SSC.
Employment
Employment includes recruitment through hiring, onboarding, accommodations, career and job development, performance management and job exit.
SSC has four KPAs related to the priority area of employment. The following describes SSC’s progress on these KPAs in 2023-24.
Increase alignment of staffing plans to the department’s established targets for hiring persons with disabilities (KPA 4.1)
Use best practices within SSC and across the GC to develop and implement an integrated strategy to better align staffing plans to the department’s established targets for hiring persons with disabilities.
Progress made
In 2023-24, SSC continued implementing the SSC Employment Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EEDI) Action Plan 2022-2025. This included training and awareness to promote the hiring, staffing and talent management of persons with disabilities.
In collaboration with the Public Service Commission of Canada, SSC delivered three outreach and training sessions to organizations that provide and promote employment services to persons with disabilities.
Increase managers’ awareness of disabilities through training (KPA 4.2)
Design and deliver tailored training on various disabilities to managers.
Progress made
SSC maintained active and sustained EEDI web engagement to enhance awareness of accessibility through various communication channels. This included promoting events and publishing articles and corporate messages focused on critical themes like building an inclusive public service, celebrating neurodiversity, advocating for the blind and visually impaired, and promoting an understanding of braille. Key initiatives included:
- Learn from yesterday, change today, enhance tomorrow: Building an accessible public service together
- Participate in Neurodiversity Celebration Week from March 18 to 24 Virtual Coffee Chat: Persons with Disabilities Champions welcome the Strategic Staffing team
- The intersection of being Black and having a disability
- White Cane Week advocates for the blind and visually impaired
- Braille is not a language—and some other things you may not know
- National Accessibility Week 2023 - Learn from yesterday, change today, enhance tomorrow: Building an accessible public service together
- Coffee chat with the Co-Champion for Persons with Disabilities
- International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2023
Increase support for employee accommodation needs (KPA 4.3)
Establish a Centre of Expertise to support employee accommodation needs that will:
- Develop and deliver regular communications for supervisors about their duty to accommodate and the resources available at SSC to support employee accommodations.
- Establish a “yes by default” approach for accommodations and adaptive computer technology, allowing SSC to manage employee accommodations and adaptive computer technology requests more quickly and efficiently.
- Develop information and tools to improve onboarding for employees with disabilities, which includes ensuring they have the accommodations they need upon arrival.
- Develop and implement a performance/data management strategy for capturing employee/accommodation information to identify and report on data/trends.
Progress made
Targeted communications by SSC’s Duty to Accommodate Centre of Expertise, (established in May 2023), about DTA best practices included:
- DTA CoE services and the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport
- Content for the SSC Gazette employee newsletter
- Advice, guidance, and support to over 630 employees and managers
- Presentations to more than 610 workers and managers
Key activities to improve understanding and dialogue have included:
- Discussions with bargaining agents, managers, and SSC’s Persons with Disabilities Network.
- Creating the Interdepartmental DTA Practitioners Community of Practice.
- Developing, integrating, and aligning DTA services with stakeholders.
- Extending our services to support accommodation needs for training, including second language training.
- Reviewing wording in job advertisements, letters of offers, and the Hiring and Onboarding Guide to improve the onboarding for persons with accommodation needs
Increase engagement with accessibility groups to improve policies, processes, and practices (KPA 4.4)
Ensure full implementation of current action plans to address EEDI and the recommendations for SSC’s Employment Systems Review (ESR), including creating working groups to review policies, processes, and employment-related behaviours.
Progress made
A working group established to co-develop initiatives to reduce or eliminate systemic barriers identified in the ESR concluded its mandate. The outstanding recommendations were integrated into the ongoing EEDI Action Plan, which tracks and monitors progress. Quarterly consultations with stakeholders will continue to ensure progress, with updates to be communicated in 2024-25.
SSC integrated Gender-based Analysis (GBA) Plus indicators that measure accessibility for built environments and equipment into the Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy (DSDS). In addition, SSC participated in an inter-departmental knowledge-sharing event on June 7, 2023, where it presented an overview of SSC’s GBA Plus experimentation initiative that reflected the contributions and recommendations of SSC’s Persons with Disabilities Network and other networks.
Built Environment
Built environment refers to all physical human-made structures and objects that make up SSC spaces. This includes entrances, elevators, signage, meeting rooms, lighting, etc. Accessibility and disability inclusion are essential in the built environment so everyone can access the same physical human-made structures and objects that make up SSC spaces.
SSC started converting its workplaces to GC workplace standards and aims to complete the transformation by 2026-27. GC workplace standards meet the Canadian Standards Association’s accessible design for the built environment standard. SSC has developed internal standards that exceed the current minimum accessibility requirements. We routinely involve the AAACT program in accommodations projects and engage with accessibility experts and persons with lived experiences throughout the project lifecycles to ensure that projects meet workplace standards.
SSC has 4 KPAs related to the priority area of the Built Environment. The following describes SSC’s progress in these KPAs in 2023-24.
Create a model of an accessible workplace (KPA 5.1)
Complete the move of SSC’s AAACT program to a new, more accessible workplace, which will allow SSC to offer the following benefits to all GC employees:
- a more accessible location
- a larger space to provide training
- a place for displaying best practices, viewing, and testing adaptive and innovative technologies.
Progress made
SSC continued construction and remediation work at the new AAACT workspace in Ottawa to improve the site’s readiness for AAACT employees in 2024-25. SSC will continue to prepare the space to welcome clients and provide in-person training.
Increase the presence of accessible workspaces (KPA 5.2)
Work with Public Services and Procurement Canada to:
- conduct accessibility audits of buildings that host SSC workplaces.
- make modifications to workplaces, where possible, based on audit findings.
Progress made
SSC began acting on the recommendations of the audits completed on 9 sites in 2022-23. By the end of 2023-24, recommendations for 360 Lisgar Street in Ottawa were 90% completed, and recommendations for 99 Metcalfe Street in Ottawa were 75% completed. These audits focused on building entrances and SSC employees’ paths to reach their workplaces. In 2023-24, SSC conducted audits on 9 additional sites and developed an action plan to audit further sites.
Increase the availability of accessible systems and tools in the SSC workplaces (KPA 5.3)
Make systems and tools that support employees coming into SSC workplaces more accessible, such as the employee workplace booking system.
Progress made
SSC implemented an upgraded version of Archibus, the tool used by SSC employees to reserve workspaces. This version includes all the features the vendor provides. SSC’s AAACT program conducted a detailed Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 audit of the updated Archibus software tool and identified 33 issues across compliance levels A and AA. SSC resolved 3 problems and referred the other 30 issues to the software vendor for remediation. SSC is collaborating with the vendor to ensure timely compliance with the WCAG 2.1 standards.
Create linkage in building welcome guides to include results of accessibility audit findings (KPA 5.4)
Update SSC’s building welcome guides to include the results of accessibility audit findings.
Progress made
SSC considered how to better communicate the findings of accessibility audits and the responses to these findings. SSC plans to report audit details and reactions on the MySSC+ intranet based on its review and update building welcome guides as required.
Communication other than Information and Communication Technologies
Communication other than ICT refers to the ways people share and access information. It can include language (messaging), using interpreters, meeting formats, visual communications, and documents. Accessible communication ensures that people with and without disabilities can access and share the same information.
SSC has 4 KPAs related to the priority area of communications. The following describes SSC’s progress in these KPAs in 2023-24.
Create an accessible intranet platform to remove accessibility barriers (KPA 6.1)
Complete migration of SSC’s intranet to a new digital platform.
Progress made
SSC completed the corporate intranet migration of MySSC to MySSC+. Accessibility barriers related to user navigation and screen readers have been remediated.
Increase accessibility on SSC’s corporate communications platforms (KPA 6.2)
Review content on SSC’s corporate communications platforms to identify opportunities for improvement.
Progress made
SSC ensured that corporate communications products were reviewed for plain language and met accessibility standards before being published internally or externally. This included using accessible fonts, font colours and text that is readable by screen readers. New communications templates, visuals and social media content also met accessibility requirements.
Increase accessibility and inclusiveness of communications through the implementation of job aids (KPA 6.3)
Develop and promote accessible and inclusive communications practices and tools.
Progress made
The SSC Events Team has a quality assurance (QA) tiger team for live webcasts. The team includes an AAACT community member with a hearing impairment who provides instant feedback on the accessibility features of each event from their perspective.
SSC used accessibility-related guides, training, tools, and resources in corporate internal communications channels to promote the importance of accessible and inclusive communications to internal clients, including GBA Plus tools posted on the intranet, accessible templates, and instructions for internal policy, among others.
Speaking engagements, including SSC leadership and all-staff events, were used to highlight accessibility and disability inclusion in messages delivered by SSC’s President and Executive Vice-President.
SSC supported hosting accessible SSC-wide events and Ask Me Anything sessions by providing sign language interpretation (American Sign Language and Langue des signes québécoise), Communication Access, Real-Time translation services, and simultaneous language interpretation in both official languages.
SSC ensured that its internal events were held in accessible spaces and that related products were available in accessible digital formats, including formats that are compatible with screen readers. For external events, social media and event promotions were published in accessible formats. If an event was not accessible, a notice was provided in an accessible format.
Increase awareness of gaps related to accessible communications (KPA 6.4)
Develop and deliver an awareness curriculum to address gaps related to accessible communications.
Progress made
SSC increased awareness of accessible communications in 2023-24 by launching and promoting the Digital Accessibility Toolkit, a comprehensive repository of knowledge, tools, and best practices to make digital content and communications universally accessible.
SSC’s AAACT program also delivered document accessibility workshops to GC employees in 2023-24.
Culture
Culture refers to prioritizing accessibility through collaboration, inclusivity, and respect. It starts by understanding what accessibility means and why it matters.
SSC has one KPA related to the priority area of culture. The following describes SSC’s progress in this KPA in 2023-24.
Increase awareness of accessibility and inclusion through change management and communications activities (KPA 7.1)
Increase awareness of accessibility and inclusion through change management and communications activities, such as:
- Publishing accessibility-related information regularly through corporate internal communications channels.
- Distributing communications related to key disability inclusion and accessibility events, such as International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) and National AccessAbility Week (NAAW).
- Sharing information on available training related to accessibility and disability inclusion.
- Communicating SSC’s progress in accessibility and disability inclusion at key speaking engagements.
- informing SSC supervisors about the duty to accommodate and the resources available at SSC to support accommodations.
Progress made
In 2023-24, SSC took several steps to promote a more accessible and inclusive culture in the workplace, including the following:
- The first-ever SSC Employee Accessibility Survey was conducted from May 31, 2023, to June 30, 2023. The survey results assessed the awareness levels of the Accessible Canada Act, SSC’s Accessibility Plan, its feedback process and SSC’s obligation to consult persons with disabilities. The survey results also established a data baseline against which to measure performance and report on progress over subsequent years.
- SSC’s Accessibility Planning and Reporting Group (APRG) was launched in January 2024 to help SSC meet the planning and reporting requirements of the Accessible Canada Act and its regulations. The APRG is a departmental body whose members include representatives from all branches and SSC’s Persons with Disabilities Network. The group enables and supports SSC-wide communication and problem-solving on accessibility barriers and actions to remove and/or prevent them.
- In 2023-24, SSC’s Accessibility team led or participated in more than a dozen committees and working groups to promote accessibility and disability inclusion awareness and initiatives across SSC and the Government of Canada.
Additional steps with SSC products that contributed to culture change include:
- Timing the publication of SSC’s first Accessibility Progress Report to coincide with IDPD.
- Holding AAACT training and information workshops during NAAW and IDPD; during the year, SSC participates in various initiatives involving other government departments.
- Providing SSC’s Digital Accessibility Toolkit to help GC employees integrate digital accessibility into their projects.
- Including accessibility commitments in SSC’s annual branch business plans.
Transportation
SSC has two KPAs related to the priority transportation area. The following describes SSC’s progress in these KPAs in 2023-24.
Create an accessible mobile application for transportation services (KPA 8.1)
Invite persons with disabilities to pilot an accessible mobile application for transport services and incorporate feedback from persons with disabilities during the pilot.
Progress made
SSC continued to progress with its Taxitab pilot project, which aims to replace taxi chits with a paperless mobile application accessible to all SSC employees, including persons with disabilities.
In 2023-24, SSC completed its review of the application’s accessibility and usability for persons with disabilities. Nearly 400 SSC employees, including persons with disabilities, participated in the pilot project, using the Taxitab application to pay for a taxi from their smartphones, tablets, or laptops. In 2024-25, the pilot will expand the user group to include and consult with more persons with disabilities and collaborate with the vendor to continue improving the application’s accessibility.
Decrease the number of Accessibility barriers that restrict movement between buildings (KPA 8.2)
On a continuous basis, review and remove additional barriers (such as signage and access) that restrict movement for persons with disabilities between buildings.
Progress made
SSC relies on its accessibility feedback process to provide ongoing monitoring. The feedback that SSC receives is used to identify and remove barriers that restrict the movement of persons with disabilities between buildings. In 2023-24, SSC did not receive any accessibility feedback related to movement between buildings, but we will continue to monitor and engage with persons with disabilities to find and remove potential barriers related to this KPA.
Consultations
SSC consulted with employees and stakeholders, including persons with disabilities, in preparing this progress report. The following consultations and engagement activities were used to develop this report.
Consultations with SSC employees, including persons with disabilities, via online questionnaires
In 2024, SSC held 2 consultations that were open to all employees. The first consultation collected information on accessibility progress against SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25, as well as ongoing challenges, barriers, and ideas for SSC’s next accessibility plan (2025-28). The second consultation allowed participants to review this 2023-24 progress report draft and provide feedback. Both consultations were open to all SSC employees, including persons with disabilities. They were promoted through various communications and engagement channels, including SSC’s Persons with Disabilities Network.
Engagement with SSC’s Persons with Disabilities Network
SSC actively engages with our Persons with Disabilities Network on an ongoing basis. In 2023-24, this included attending network meetings to provide updates and gather feedback, encouraging network members to participate in consultation activities, and discussions with network co-chairs and champions to inform accessibility planning, reporting and implementation at SSC.
SSC Employee Survey on Accessibility
In May and June 2023, SSC conducted its first annual survey to assess awareness of the Accessible Canada Act, SSC’s Accessibility Plan and SSC’s accessibility feedback mechanism. The survey was open to all SSC employees, and 23 percent of respondents identified as a person with a disability. Results indicated that most respondents were aware of the Accessible Canada Act and SSC’s Accessibility Plan. However, less than half of respondents were aware of SSC’s accessibility feedback mechanism. The results from this first annual survey provide a valuable baseline for future surveys.
Consultations with SSC branches through a dedicated Accessibility Planning and Reporting Group
In 2023-24 SSC established the APRG, which includes representation from all SSC branches and persons with disabilities. This group held 6 meetings to coordinate the implementation of SSC’s Accessibility Plan, including the planning and reporting requirements and SSC’s accessibility feedback mechanism. Input from APRG members, including persons with disabilities, was used to inform the development of this progress report.
SSC also actively engages with our SSC Planners Network to ensure accessibility planning and reporting is integrated into SSC’s corporate planning and reporting processes.
Consultations with SSC’s AAACT Program
SSC’s AAACT program is a leader in public service accessibility, and its expertise in accessible digital content ensures that Government of Canada products and services are available to everyone. For public servants with disabilities or injuries, AAACT offers various adaptive computer technologies, tools, training, services, and resources. The AAACT team includes employees with disabilities and lived experience with accessibility. As part of the same directorate, our Accessibility Planning and Reporting team works closely with the AAACT program to inform SSC’s accessibility planning, reporting and feedback.
Other consultations
Other relevant consultations or engagements that informed the development of this report include meetings of SSC’s Diversity Council, an accessibility question in SSC’s Customer Satisfaction Feedback Initiative (a survey for Government of Canada Chief Information Officers), and discussions with SSC’s Office of the Ombuds related to its report, Uncovering the human experiences behind the numbers: Deep dive into diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging at Shared Services Canada. SSC is also an active participant in several interdepartmental accessibility groups where best practices and lessons learned are shared to inform the Government of Canada accessibility plans, progress reports and feedback mechanisms.
Feedback
SSC has an accessibility feedback mechanism that enables SSC employees, partners, and the public to provide feedback on the accessibility barriers they experience when dealing with SSC and how the department implements its Accessibility Plan.
People can submit their feedback via email, an online form, telephone, or regular mail. Receipt is acknowledged in the same format as the feedback was sent, and persons submitting feedback can remain anonymous. Anonymous feedback accounted for 38 percent of feedback received in 2023-24. The most common priority area of feedback received was Employment, followed by Information and Communication.
How SSC manages the feedback we receive
When we receive feedback, we do a preliminary review to determine actions to address it. A summary of the feedback is then sent to the appropriate areas within SSC to develop an action plan to either remove the barrier(s) identified or address any other aspects of the feedback to prevent future barriers. When the action plan has been completed and the case is considered resolved, the originator is notified, if they requested a response.
How SSC is considering feedback about our Accessibility Plan
SSC received questions about our ability to measure and report progress against the actions in our Accessibility Plan. We acknowledge that while the Accessibility Plan presents clear goals and objectives, additional work is needed to identify a quantitative basis on which to measure and report on progress made.
Feedback statistics, observations, analysis, and trends
SSC’s accessibility feedback mechanism was launched in December 2022, when SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25 was published. During the first fiscal year, SSC received 18 feedback items. In 2023-24, SSC received 52 feedback items. Some feedback items are complex, and analysis is completed to recognize root cause(s) and determine the appropriate actions to address the barrier(s) identified.
The feedback items often identified barriers that spanned more than one priority area. In fact, 22 feedback items covered 2 priority areas, and three items covered 3 priority areas. Approximately 79 percent of the feedback items received are being addressed by the organization responsible for resolution.
The Path Forward
Forecast for 2024-2025
The following activities are planned to occur during the 2024-25 fiscal year, the final year of SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25.
- Develop a plan to prepare and deploy new ICT regulations and standards across SSC.
- Continue work on SSC’s Accessible ICT Baseline Research Project.
- Complete a new multi-dimensional client service, training, and accessible workspace for the AAACT program.
- Identify barriers and take corrective action to respond to increased on-site presence.
- Continue to pilot the application of the EN 301 549 standard to SSC’s procurement of accessible ICT products.
- Publish the Employment Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Action Plan Progress Report.
- Conduct SSC’s second annual Accessibility Survey to measure awareness of SSC’s accessibility commitments.
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Monitoring to ensure:
- Accessibility considerations within human resource management processes have been implemented successfully.
- Corporate communications products are reviewed for plain language and meet accessibility standards before being published internally or externally.
- Internal events are held in accessible spaces, and event products are available in digital formats for use with accessibility tools, such as screen readers.
- External events that social media and event promotions are published in accessible formats.
Lessons learned
As we report on the second year of SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25, we reflect on lessons learned that will inform future accessibility plans and actions. Observations to date include the following:
- KPAs will be “SMART” (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound).
- KPAs will have implementation plans, including project leads and resources identified when the accessibility plan is published.
- We have made progress on foundational pieces, such as standards compliance and integration of accessibility requirements in key departmental processes and practices.
Closing
Shared Services Canada sincerely appreciates the continuing guidance of persons with disabilities. We emphasize our respect for their lived experience, and we commit to:
- engaging in ongoing discussions with persons with disabilities to strengthen our collaboration.
- further identifying areas of future work to identify, prevent and remove barriers.
- monitoring the successful implementation of SSC’s Accessibility Plan 2022-25 in the next fiscal year.
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