Evaluation of the Office of Public Service Accessibility: Final Report

Expected outcome

Departments are aware of their role in implementing the Public Service Accessibility Strategy.

Conclusion

Departments know their responsibilities in implementing the Accessibility Strategy, and OPSA has contributed to this awareness. The legal requirement that all departments develop and publish an accessibility plan by December 2022 likely helped in achieving this awareness.

All the evidence confirms that departments are aware of the following:

• the importance of accessibility as a priority of the federal public service
• departments’ role in fostering accessibility as outlined in the Accessibility Strategy
• the distinct role of OPSA compared to the role of federal departments

Many key informants mentioned the Accessible Canada Act and its requirement for departments to publish accessibility plans by December 2022. This finding suggests that the Accessible Canada Act’s requirements contributed to ensuring that departments understood their responsibility to implement the Accessibility Strategy. A review of similar practices in other jurisdictions suggests that when departments are mandated to create their own accessibility plans, report on them publicly and provide regular updates, such actions positively affect overall progress.

The Deputy Minister Accessibility Group and the Assistant Deputy Minister Steering Committee, with key partner stakeholders, had generally positive views about the improved awareness of departments regarding their role in implementing the Accessibility Strategy. In fact, many respondents from the Deputy Minister Accessibility Group and the Assistant Deputy Minister Steering Committee mentioned that one of OPSA’s strongest accomplishments has been to effectively raise awareness throughout the public service through its communications efforts.

The increased awareness among deputy heads was strongly attributed to the presence and leadership of the Deputy Minister of OPSA, who was described as being “charismatic and articulate,” having lived experience, actively engaging at all levels, and capable of captivating an audience. This presence created a “ripple effect” across the public service and contributed to the overall increase in awareness.

Documents show that OPSA has been working to ensure that departments are well informed about the Accessibility Strategy and their responsibilities in implementing it. Some examples are as follows:

• the Accessibility Strategy outlines actions that departments need to take^{Footnote 4}
• from 2018 to 2021, OPSA held:
  • nine in-person regional townhalls
  • five in-person “Accessibility Spotlight” learning sessions reaching 5,000 public servants
  • five virtual townhalls reaching 6,500 participants
• in 2020–21, OPSA launched various micro-learning products to help learners better support the implementation of the Accessible Canada Act and the Accessibility Strategy^{Footnote 5}

As the examples below show, departments were aware of the Accessibility Strategy and what it required:

• more than 20 departments throughout the Government of Canada participated as early adopters of the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport^{Footnote 6}
• 17 departments used the voluntary departmental Accessibility Self-Assessment Tool^{Footnote 7}
• the Interdepartmental Accessibility Community of Practice, first started in 2019, expanded to include more than 66 departments by 2022^{Footnote 8}

Expected outcome

Departments have the capacity to support accessibility and disability inclusion within their organization.

Developed by OPSA

• The Accessibility Self-Assessment Tool
• Hiring Persons with Disabilities: Managers’ Toolkit

Developed by Shared Services Canada with support from OPSA

• Guidelines on Making Communications Products and Activities Accessible
• The Digital Accessibility Toolkit
• A guide to acquisition of IT-related adaptive technologies

Expected outcome

Departments know where to find information on accessibility and workplace accommodations.

Conclusion

The evidence shows that departments generally know where to find information about accessibility and workplace accommodations and that OPSA has contributed to this knowledge.

According to survey data on OPSA’s communications and tools:

• 55% of survey respondents agreed that:
  • they can easily find information on improving accessibility and workplace accommodations in their department; the Accessibility Hub on GCpedia, which is an early CEWF project and an evergreen online repository of tools, guidance and advice, has helped improve public service accessibility knowledge
• 50% of survey respondents found the Accessibility Hub to be extremely or very useful, although some indicated that it is difficult to search
• 49% found OPSA’s accessibility-related outreach and engagement activities to be extremely useful or very useful
• 40% found OPSA’s accessibility-related advice and guidance to be extremely useful or very useful

In addition to using the Accessibility Hub to distribute information, OPSA shares information through:

• distribution lists
• the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport newsletter
• events such as National AccessAbility Week, government-wide virtual townhalls and meetings of the National Managers’ Community

Some key informants noted that the amount of information distributed within departments often depends on managers and how engaged they are with their employees.

Expected outcome

Federal organizations outside OPSA are leading or partnering on CEWF projects and initiatives.

Conclusion

Initially, OPSA led most CEWF initiatives, but over time, other federal organizations began to lead more and more projects. The number of CEWF projects that had multiple partners also increased.

OPSA led many early CEWF projects, such as the Benchmarking Study of Workplace Accommodations and the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport, which were led mostly without formal participation by other organizations. Less than half (46%) of the CEWF’s early projects had collaborating partners.

However, as of September 2022, all “approved and active” projects had partnership support from at least one department, if not several. This increased partnership shows a growing trend of federal organizations other than OPSA leading and partnering on CEWF projects. Some departments have been particularly active, such as Shared Services Canada, Public Services and Procurement Canada, and TBS.

Some key informants highlighted the importance of considering differences in resources and capacity between small and large departments when considering their ability to propose, lead, partner and participate in initiatives.

Expected outcome

Departments have taken concrete actions to remove barriers to accessibility in their workplace and/or services.

Conclusion

Departments indicate that since August 2018, they have taken concrete actions to remove barriers to accessibility in their workplace and services.

The evaluation primarily looked at OPSA’s progress toward its immediate outcomes, but there is also evidence that departments are making progress toward intermediate and long-term outcomes.

According to the survey’s findings, 82% of respondents agree or strongly agree that since August 2018, their department has taken concrete actions required by the Accessible Canada Act to remove barriers to accessibility in the workplace.^{Footnote 10}

The evaluation’s document review showed examples of how OPSA has helped improve workplace accommodation practices and processes. This contribution was validated by key informants. For example, OPSA:

• provided advice to the Public Service Commission of Canada to launch the Federal Internship Program for Canadians with Disabilities to accelerate targeted recruitment of students with disabilities
• provided deputy heads with specific data and tools to increase the representation of persons with disabilities
• provided guidance to Public Services and Procurement Canada on how to:
  • incorporate accessibility into government procurement
  • gather user feedback to measure client satisfaction with the accessibility of government programs and services
• partnered with the Canada School of Public Service and Shared Services Canada to create new courses, learning events, and guidance on accessibility and disability inclusion for:
  • managers
  • executives
  • functional communities for human resources, information technology and communications

Expected outcome

An accessibility lens informs the development of policies and processes.

Conclusion

Although there has been progress in considering accessibility when creating policies and processes, such consideration within departments is limited.

OPSA has worked to ensure that accessibility and disability considerations were fully integrated into Government of Canada post-pandemic transformation efforts. Some key informants described how accessibility has been “internalized by departments and human resources.” For instance, departments are now prioritizing hiring individuals with disabilities and focusing on accommodation issues. Certain initiatives, such as the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport have now “become part of the vernacular in government.” In raising awareness, OPSA has helped “[generate] commitment to departmental strategies.”

The evaluation’s document review shows that an accessibility lens is influencing the development of policy and processes to some extent. For example:

• in 2021–22, new guidance on the following was released to help departments remove barriers:
  • Accessible Canada Regulations
  • Guidelines on Making Communications Products and Activities Accessible
  • Guide on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Terminology
• OPSA worked closely with the Office of the Chief Information Officer to:
  • ensure that government tools purchased and used, such as Microsoft 365, have strong accessibility features
  • provide guidance on using the European Union Standard

The evidence shows that although more policies and processes are taking accessibility into account, more work needs to be done. For example, departments did not always involve people with disabilities when creating policies and programs.

Expected outcome

CEWF projects and initiatives contribute to improvements in workplace accommodation practices and processes.

Conclusion

Although CEWF projects have contributed to several improvements in workplace accommodation practices and processes, there were different opinions on how effective these projects have been.

As of March 2023, 15 projects were completed, 11 projects were ongoing, and one project was being developed. These 26 projects have spent approximately 65% of the fund. By March 2024, it is expected that the CEWF will have supported 27 projects and used all its funding.

Based on interviews and documents, it was found that the CEWF enabled the testing of models and accommodations to remove barriers for persons with disabilities. The projects led to improvements in workplace accommodation practices and processes. Following are some examples:

• The Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport has been integrated into several departmental workplace accommodation processes, despite facing resistance in some departments. Resistance could be because of:
  • capacity issues
  • varying levels of commitment
  • a need for more cultural change and guidance
• The Lending Library Service Pilot Project provided adaptive devices to 256 employees in 49 departments, lending a total of 809 tools since its launch in late 2022.^{Footnote 11 Footnote 12}
• The LED Lighting Project, led by Public Services and Procurement Canada in collaboration with Health Canada, National Research Council of Canada, Statistics Canada, and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, tested lighting types to remove barriers for people with light sensitivity.
• A public opinion research study was conducted to identify the root causes of harassment and discrimination toward public servants with disabilities in the workplace:
  • the findings will help make recommendations to address these issues and create a healthy and respectful work environment for everyone
  • in collaboration with the Canada School of Public Service, a series of e‑learning modules were piloted to build awareness and knowledge about neurodiversity for employees, managers and human resources professionals
• The Engaging DisAbility Innovation project used an innovative research methodology to describe how employees with disabilities experience recruitment, retention, promotion and workplace accommodation practices in two departments. This project was designed and developed by a Community Advisory Board, which is a disability committee led by employees at Canadian Heritage and Statistics Canada.
• The CEWF helped create and set up a shared workplace accommodations centre at TBS that will provide a centralized and neutral case management model for accommodations requests.

Some project leads noted that their department would not have been able to fund their project without the CEWF and that their project had a significant impact on accessibility in the Government of Canada. Others noted that the CEWF application process was difficult and time-consuming.

Less than one quarter (22%) of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the CEWF has contributed to improvements in workplace accommodation practices and processes in their department. Over one third (38%) reported “not applicable,” which might be because they didn’t know about the CEWF or couldn’t access it.

Expected outcome

The federal public service workplace is free from barriers for all employees.

Conclusion

Although there has been some progress, the federal public service workplace is not yet barrier-free for all employees.

OPSA has supported changes at the system level within the Government of Canada, but there is still much work to be done. Many departments still need OPSA’s assistance as their understanding of the barriers faced by people with disabilities evolves. All key informants felt that OPSA supported some system-level change within the Government of Canada accessibility ecosystem. OPSA has achieved greater understanding by departments through:

• raising awareness, including among senior leaders
• supporting the creation and importance of networks for people with disabilities throughout the government
• providing guidance and resources to all federal departments
• helping with process changes, such as working to improve enterprise workplace accommodations and helping departments develop their accessibility plans
• ensuring that federal public service accountability tools are available and that they measure aspects related to accessibility

Findings indicate that the Accessibility Strategy is contributing to improvements in workplace accommodation practices and processes. Evidence includes the following:

• the advancement of many of the Accessibility Strategy’s core system-wide projects, such as:
  • the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport
  • the Draft Standard on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Accessibility and ICT Accessibility Scorecard
  • accessibility assessments of buildings
• support for departments to attract, hire and retain persons with disabilities
• updates to the Management Accountability Framework and the Public Service Employee Survey to collect new data on accessibility in areas such as accommodations for persons with disabilities and their workplace experiences

Despite these positive developments, many key informants pointed out barriers or questioned how much progress has been made in specific areas, such as the federal goal to hire 5,000 persons with disabilities.

Key informants identified factors that hinder progress, including the following:

• problems with assessing progress, particularly regarding people with disabilities; key informants also noted the absence of definitions of success
• resistance from functional communities such as information technology and labour relations units that strictly interpret rules can make it difficult to build capacity for making improvements

“It’s not just about hiring; are we set up to get them whatever they need to be able to do their job?”

Although much evidence shows positive change at the departmental level and across government, more effort is needed to achieve the goal of an “ambitious culture shift.” Key informants mentioned the challenge of changing and emerging needs, and that some target groups may benefit more than expected. Examples described were an “unintended preference” for high-functioning individuals on the autism spectrum and individuals with invisible disabilities. Key informants stressed the importance of striving for equity across disabilities, including those who are severely disabled.

All key informants raised concerns about the sustainability of these changes. Specifically, many indicated that the federal public service is not yet fully equipped to take on this work alone and that smaller departments still require targeted support. They expressed concern that the work would not continue without OPSA’s involvement. Survey findings also strongly indicated that departments will continue to need OPSA beyond 2023–24.

Management response

OPSA agrees that its awareness activities should be expanded by:

• advising and guiding those responsible for implementing accommodation practices
• advising and guiding departments and agencies who struggle with capacity

Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund (CEWF) project results should be disseminated. Expanding awareness activities align with the Accessible Canada Act requirement of creating a barrier-free Canada and federal public service by 2040.

Management response

OPSA agrees that monitoring and fostering departmental performance on accessibility and accommodation processes is a key priority to ensure that accessibility is meaningfully improved across the Government of Canada. The Deputy Ministers’ Accessibility Group has also identified the improvement of Government of Canada measurement capabilities as a critical aspect of making the federal public service barrier-free. OPSA therefore agrees that departments should be provided with resources to support accessibility measurement progress.

Management response

OPSA agrees that options should be developed to ensure that investments in the Accessibility Strategy, the Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport and the commitment to hire 5,000 persons with disabilities by 2025 be maintained, whether OPSA sunsets or not in March 2024. The inclusion of persons with disabilities should remain a priority to embed accessibility in all Government of Canada activities. OPSA will issue an accessibility progress report in December 2023, which will highlight recommendations to continue to advance accessibility across the public service, whether OPSA sunsets or not. Furthermore, OPSA will provide the results of the evaluation with the Assistant Secretary of Government Operations Sector, Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat.

As noted in the evaluation, the legislative obligations introduced by the Accessible Canada Act have been instrumental in helping departments focus their efforts on accessibility and disability inclusion. OPSA has supported the operationalization of the Accessible Canada Act through building awareness, providing guidance and tools, and convening partners. There is a confluence of work, including through implementation and measuring progress of the Clerk’s Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion, in that:

• all federally regulated entities must:
  • publish their first accessibility plans
  • report annually on their progress in identifying, preventing and removing barriers faced by persons with disabilities
• the forthcoming modernized self-identification tool will influence change in the largest employer and service provider in Canada

OPSA has strategically identified a number of proposed actions to further embed an accessibility lens within departments, and it will continue to undertake these activities with the support of key partners. Collaboration has been a priority since OPSA’s inception in 2018.