Accessible Canada Act – Progress Report 2024 - Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada

Table of contents

• Introduction
• General
• Areas covered by section 5 of the ACA
• Consultations
• Feedback
• Conclusion

Introduction

The Government of Canada (GoC) aspires to have a public service that is accessible by default for the Canadian public, government institutions and their workforce. This aspiration is rooted in the belief that an inclusive public service is more innovative, efficient and productive. The goal is to make Canada’s public service barrier-free.

The GoC held consultations with persons with disabilities and the disability community and also heard from more than 6,000 Canadians about what an accessible Canada means to them. This consultation informed the creation of the Accessible Canada Act (ACA).

The ACA guides government departments, agencies and federally regulated organizations in removing barriers to achieve full accessibility and in their reporting obligations to demonstrate progress.

A federal workforce that is reflective of the Canadian population is viewed as essential to the design and implementation of programs and services that are bias and barrier-free and address the needs of all Canadians.

The OCL context

The Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada (OCL) ensures transparent and ethical lobbying by administering the Lobbying Act and the Lobbyists' Code of Conduct. Its responsibilities include maintaining a searchable registry of information reported by lobbyists, providing education to stakeholders and verifying that lobbyists comply with requirements..

The OCL is a micro-organization of 36 skilled, talented and dedicated professionals who work to achieve our mandate of ensuring transparent and ethical lobbying. While the OCL has promoted employment equity for many years, management has recognized the need to strengthen recruitment and workplace initiatives in relation to persons with disabilities and work towards building a more diverse workforce, a more accessible work environment and a more equitable approach to working with Canadians.

During the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the OCL implemented its first three-year-plan on accessibility for 2023-2025 and identified the following ten goals:

1. Create a culture of accessibility, where respect and inclusion are embedded in all aspects of the workplace and where all employees are empowered and supported to achieve their full potential.
2. Implement accessible practices to eliminate and prevent barriers to the recruitment, retention, and promotion of persons with disabilities.
3. Ensure that OCL staff is sufficiently equipped to deliver accessible programs and services.
4. Provide Canadians with barrier-free access to the OCL’s programs and services.
5. Create a workplace free of physical barriers to improve the working environment for all OCL staff of various abilities.
6. Ensure that OCL staff have a safe environment to work in.
7. Provide accessible technology to ensure that OCL staff have access to the tools and platforms they need to perform their work.
8. Acquire and implement technologies that ensure that all Canadians can access OCL’s programs and services.
9. Remove barriers for OCL communications products by creating an “accessibility by design” culture, where staff at all levels are informed and aware of accessibility by design requirements.
10. Share knowledge and best practices widely to reduce barriers across the public service.

These ten goals relate to the areas covered by section 5 of the ACA, which are the following: 

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

The purpose of this report is to showcase the progress of the OCL in relation to achieving these accessibility goals for 2024.

General

The person occupying the position of Executive Director, Corporate Services was designated by the OCL to receive feedback on accessibility on behalf of the Office.

Our Office may be contacted to :

• request copies of our accessibility plans, our progress reports and descriptions of the feedback process on certain alternative formats; 
• submit feedback on the obstacles encountered in dealing with our Office; 
• provide feedback on the implementation of our accessibility plan.

This can be done by contacting the Executive Director, Corporate Services as follows:

• By email: info@lobbycanada.gc.ca
• By telephone: (613) 957-2760
• By mail: Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada
  410 Laurier Avenue West, 8th Floor
  Ottawa, ON K1R 1B7

Feedback may also be provided on our website at the following link: https://lobbycanada.gc.ca/en/accessibility

Areas covered by section 5 of the ACA

The following sub-sections will focus on showcasing the progress made with respect to the elimination or prevention of obstacles identified by our Office in our accessibility plan in the areas covered by section 5 of the ACA. These areas are as follows:

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

Employment

In its 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan, the OCL identified the two following goals related to employment:

1. Create a culture of accessibility, where respect and inclusion are embedded in all aspects of the workplace and where all employees are empowered and supported to achieve their full potential.
2. Implement accessible practices to eliminate and prevent barriers to the recruitment, retention, and promotion of persons with disabilities.

Goal 1

The first goal identified is to create a culture of accessibility, where respect and inclusion are embedded in all aspects of the workplace and where all employees are empowered and supported to achieve their full potential.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following action during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Promote accessibility-related tools, resources and events, including promoting and encouraging participation in activities for the National Accessibility Week.

To this end, in December 2023, the OCL has implemented an intranet to facilitate access to a variety of information for staff. This includes accessibility-related tools and resources, such as links to the Accessibility Passport and to the Government of Canada Digital Accessibility toolkit.

In 2024, the OCL intranet also promoted participation to various accessibility-related events, such as the National Accessibility Week that was held in May 2024. The OCL also promoted participation to the Canada School of Public Service event held on December 3, 2024, for the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. 

The OCL has also been promoting mental health-related activities, events and resources to all staff through the intranet and by email on an ongoing basis. All OCL staff members are periodically reminded of the mental health resources available to them when needed. 

Goal 2

The second goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to implement accessible practices to eliminate and prevent barriers to the recruitment, retention, and promotion of persons with disabilities.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following actions during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Leverage interdepartmental accessibility groups to acquire tools and develop accessibility expertise in staffing in consultation with the Canadian Human Rights Commission, our human resources provider.
• Review available workforce data to gain insight into gaps for persons with disabilities. This includes analyzing staff utilization rates, staff representation rates and drop-off rates at different stages of the selection process.
• Promote talent management programs that facilitate the participation of persons with disabilities.
• Implement and promote the new self-identification questionnaire designed to collect information on the composition of the Public Service workforce to comply with legislation on employment equity.
• Ensure onboarding practices are accessible. This includes reviewing and updating the OCL orientation program and checklist for new employees. 

The following paragraphs will aim to detail the efforts made towards each of these supporting action items.

• Leverage interdepartmental accessibility groups to acquire tools and develop accessibility expertise in staffing in consultation with the Canadian Human Rights Commission, our human resources provider. 

During the summer of 2023, the OCL updated its instrument of delegation of human resources authorities to include our legislative responsibility under the Public Service Employment Act (PSEA) to conduct an evaluation in relation to biases and barriers before every staffing process. This requires an evaluation of the process steps to ensure that they are exempt of biases or barriers for persons with disabilities. Since then, the OCL has completed this evaluation before each staffing process and has implemented changes when needed. For example, the OCL has reviewed and modified statements of merit criteria to ensure that they are exempt from biases and barriers before the beginning of staffing processes.

The OCL will continue to consult its human resources provider, the Canadian Human Rights Commission, to obtain information on accessibility best practices when staffing employees. 

• Review available workforce data to gain insight into gaps for persons with disabilities. This includes analyzing staff utilization rates, staff representation rates and drop-off rates at different stages of the selection process.

Since the beginning of the fiscal year 2024-2025, the OCL did not complete many staffing processes. Accordingly, this small number was not suited to conducting an analysis of representation rates. 

• Promote talent management programs that facilitate the participation of persons with disabilities.

Due to being a micro-organization, there is no talent management program per se currently in place at the OCL. However, talent management is assessed on a case-by-case basis between staff and management. All OCL employees are invited to take training and participate in events that will help them progress along their career paths whether they are persons with disabilities or not.

• Implement and promote the new self-identification questionnaire designed to collect information on the composition of the Public Service workforce to comply with legislation on employment equity.

This supporting action was originally set out to be completed in 2022-2023. As the new self-identification questionnaire is not yet available, staff members have been informed that the self-identification questionnaire will be made available online shortly and that they will be invited to complete it when available.

• Ensure onboarding practices are accessible. This includes reviewing and updating the OCL orientation program and checklist for new employees.

The OCL is currently working on implementing an onboarding guide for new employees. This onboarding guide will ensure that onboarding practices are complete, consistent and accessible. During the creation of this onboarding guide, OCL employees have been consulted on its content. They will also be encouraged to provide feedback after its completion planned by March 31, 2025.

Built environment

The built environment can have a material impact on health and wellbeing and, if optimized, can ensure that all employees and clients have equal and fair access to and use of internal infrastructure.

In its 2023-2025 accessibility report, the OCL identified the following two goals related to the area of the built environment:

1. Create a workplace free of physical barriers to improve the working environment for all OCL staff of various abilities.
2. Ensure that OCL staff have a safe environment to work in.

Goal 3

The third goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to create a workplace free of physical barriers to improve the working environment for all OCL staff of various abilities.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following action during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Continue to identify and implement workstations for persons with an impairment.

The OCL is always committed on providing workspaces and equipment that meets the specific needs of its staff. Employees are encouraged to receive an ergonomic assessment to determine which equipment would meet their needs. Upon their arrival at the OCL, employees are encouraged to communicate their special needs and the accommodations required to their manager. This is, and will continue to be, a priority for the OCL.

Goal 4

The fourth goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to ensure that OCL staff have a safe environment to work in. 

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following supporting action during the 2024-2025 fiscal year: 

• Discuss with Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) and the landlord of the feasibility that smoke, fire and other emergency alarms have visual as well as auditory alerts. 

The OCL approached PSPC to evaluate the feasibility for the emergency alarm system to have visual as well as auditory alerts. The OCL will evaluate its obligations under the Ontario Building Code to assess whether the installation of the required devices is necessary.

Information and communication technologies (ICT)

Central agencies and common service providers set government standards for the acquisition of software and hardware for many products and services. Their leadership is essential in moving towards more accessible infrastructure.

In its 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan, the OCL identified two goals related to the area of information and communication technologies (ICT), which are as follows: 

1. Provide accessible technology to ensure that OCL staff have access to the tools and platforms they need to perform their work.
2. Acquire and implement technologies that ensure that all Canadians can access OCL’s programs and services.

Goal 5

The fifth goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to provide accessible technology to ensure that OCL staff have access to the tools and platforms they need to perform their work.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following actions during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Acquire technology with accessibility in mind. 
• Add accessibility to the compliance assessment for new nonstandard software requests, which already incorporate cybersecurity and privacy assessments, as part of the non-standard software/service request procedure. 

The following paragraphs will aim to detail the efforts made towards each of these supporting action items. 

• Acquire technology with accessibility in mind.

OCL’s current technology acquisition practices take accessibility into account. Indeed, OCL strives to always have technologies on hand that can meet the specific needs of staff (ambidextrous mice, large screens, adjustable worktables, etc.). 

OCL employees are also encouraged to indicate any special needs they may have in terms of technological equipment to their manager, so that they can be provided with the equipment that they need.

• Add accessibility to the compliance assessment for new nonstandard software requests, which already incorporate cybersecurity and privacy assessments, as part of the non-standard software/service request procedure.

When acquiring non-standard end-user software at the OCL, procurement staff are required to ask suppliers to provide a third-party accessibility report as part of the procurement process. In 2024-2025, the OCL did not acquire any non-standard end-user software.

Goal 6

The sixth goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to acquire and implement technologies that ensure that all Canadians can access OCL’s programs and services. 

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following actions during the 2024-2025 fiscal year: 

• Consult the Accessibility, Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) team on leading-edge Corporate Services technology and seek training opportunities provided by AAACT. Acquisitions will be undertaken if cost benefit analysis warrants. 
• Assist Canadians who require technological assistance with filling out mandatory forms and using OCL services. 

The following paragraphs will aim to detail the efforts made towards each of these supporting action items. 

• Consult the Accessibility, Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) team on leading-edge Corporate Services 2023-2024 14 technology and seek training opportunities provided by AAACT. Acquisitions will be undertaken if cost benefit analysis warrants.

The OCL is scheduled to consult with the Accessibility, Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) team by March 31, 2024, to determine whether leading-edge technology could benefit us, and whether certain training might be relevant for some of our staff members. We will consider purchasing these technologies and taking the necessary training if the cost-benefit analysis warrants it.

• Consult the Accessibility, Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) team on leading-edge Corporate Services technology and seek training opportunities provided by AAACT. Acquisitions will be undertaken if cost benefit analysis warrants. 

In August 2024, the OCL consulted the AAACT team to request their support to conduct an evaluation of the accessibility of the OCL’s website and of Lobbyists Registration System (LRS). In addition to conducting these accessibility evaluations, the AAACT team provided resources and training information to the OCL. The OCL plans on undertaking training recommended by the AAACT Team before March 31, 2025.

• Assist Canadians who require technological assistance with filling out mandatory forms and using OCL services.

In recent months, the OCL enlisted the services of the AAACT to assess the accessibility of the OCL’s website and Lobbyists Registration System (LRS). Each platform was assessed individually. The primary focus of the evaluation was on pages that were frequently accessed, top tasks and complex pages. Following each assessment, the AAACT provided a report which included recommendations and suggested actions to improve the accessibility of the website and of the LRS.

After carefully considering the reports, a management response will be developed, and action plans will be put in place to ensure that accessibility improvements are implemented in a timely manner. However, the OCL already initiated work on the recommendations, and several have been completed prior to the publishing of this report in December 2024.

These improvements to increase the accessibility of the OCL website and of the LRS will help Canadians with disabilities filing out mandatory forms finding information and using OCL services. 

The OCL also has an advisory services team that can assist Canadians when filing out mandatory forms. 

Communication, other than ICT

The GoC community of practice indicates that communications are a system for transmitting or exchanging information, and that performance indicators are under development for accessible communications.

Government accessibility guidance suggests web material should be written to a grade 6 to 8 level. Consideration could be given to a plain language review of the current content for individuals requiring assistance in understanding and acting upon their privacy rights.

In its 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan, the OCL identified the following two goals related to the area of communication (other than ICT): 

1. Remove barriers for OCL communications products by creating an “accessibility by design” culture, where staff at all levels are aware of requirements.
2. Share knowledge and best practices widely to reduce barriers across the public service.

Goal 7

The seventh goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to remove barriers for OCL communications products by creating an “accessibility by design” culture, where staff at all levels are aware of requirements.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following actions during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Encourage staff to include plain language training in their learning plans and to follow the plain language process. 
• Ensure current employees and future hires are knowledgeable about GoC guidelines for usability and accessibility of content. 
• Continue to ensure that the OCL website is accessible through ongoing compliance with WCAG and the Standard of Web Accessibility. 
• Explore methods of offering additional help to Canadians when filling out forms required to access OCL services. 

The following paragraphs will aim to detail the efforts made towards each of these supporting action items. 

• Encourage staff to include plain language training in their learning plans and to follow the plain language process.

While the OCL front-line employees are striving to use plain language during their interactions with Canadians, no formal training has been identified. The OCL recently finalized a guide for the use of plain language that is available on the Office Intranet. Employees are encouraged to use it as needed.

• Ensure current employees and future hires are knowledgeable about GoC guidelines for usability and accessibility of content. 

Current OCL employees and future hires are expected to be informed of GoC guidelines for usability and accessibility of content. Employees who are responsible for posting public information are aware of these guidelines. Information pertaining to the usability and accessibility of content is also available on the Office intranet.

• Continue to ensure that the OCL website is accessible through ongoing compliance with WCAG and the Standard of Web Accessibility.

Our team continually ensures that the OCL’s website is accessible and compliant with WCAG and the Standard of Web Accessibility. 

• Explore methods of offering additional help to Canadians when filling out forms required to access OCL services.

In recent months, the OCL enlisted the services of the AAACT to assess the accessibility of the OCL’s website and Lobbyists Registration System (LRS). Each platform was assessed individually. The primary focus of the evaluation was on pages that were frequently accessed, top tasks and complex pages. Following each assessment, the AAACT provided a report which included recommendations and suggested actions to improve the accessibility of the website and of the LRS.

After carefully considering the reports, a management response will be developed, and action plans will be put in place to ensure that accessibility improvements are implemented in a timely manner. However, the OCL already initiated work on the recommendations, and several have been completed prior to the publishing of this report in December 2024. 

These improvements to increase the accessibility of the OCL website and of the LRS will help Canadians with disabilities filing out mandatory forms, finding information, and using OCL services.

Goal 8

The eighth goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to share knowledge and best practices widely to reduce barriers across the public service.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following supporting action during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Develop an OCL plain language reference guide and checklist.

To this end, the OCL recently published a guide for the use of plain language that is available on the Office Intranet. Employees are encouraged to use it as needed.  

The procurement of goods, services and facilities

The OCL has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) for its procurement services.

The Executive Director, Corporate Services ensured that procurement activities conducted on behalf of the OCL comply with all legal and policy requirements, including the ACA. Accessibility requirements have been part of the procurement process from the outset.

The design and delivery of programs and services

The OCL provides services that ensure transparency and accountability in the lobbying of public office holders to increase the public’s confidence in the integrity of government decision-making as follows:

• Maintain a registry of lobbyists
• Offer advisory services
• Verify and investigate allegations of non-compliance
• Review requests for exemption to the five-year prohibition on lobbying
• Verify the compliance of monthly communications reports
• Provide outreach
• Maintain media relations

In its 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan, the OCL identified two goals related to the area of design and delivery of programs and services, which are as follows: 

1. Ensure that OCL staff is sufficiently equipped to deliver accessible programs and services.
2. Provide Canadians with barrier-free access to the OCL’s programs and services.

Goal 9

The ninth goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to ensure that OCL staff is sufficiently equipped to deliver accessible programs and services.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following action during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Review the services inventory with an Accessibility Lens and ensure this inventory is posted in the Government of Canada interactive data tool, GC Infobase, in keeping with the Policy on Service and Digital.

The OCL is planning a review of its services inventory and will keep accessibility in mind while doing so. The OCL originally aimed at completing this review by March 31, 2024. That said, due to a lack of resources, this action will be postponed to the 2025-2026 fiscal year.

Once the review is completed, the OCL will ensure that this inventory is posted in the Government of Canada interactive data tool, GC Infobase, in keeping with the Policy on Service and Digital. 

Goal 10

The tenth and last goal identified in the OCL 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan is to provide Canadians with barrier-free access to the OCL’s programs and services.

To achieve this goal, the OCL committed on completing the following actions during the 2024-2025 fiscal year:

• Encourage the use of plain language for investigation reports and other OCL publications, such as guidance documents and interpretation bulletins.
• Retain an external resource to review and assess OCL’s website, the Lobbyists Registration System, products and client touch points from an Accessibility Lens.
• Explore solutions identified to simplify, when possible, OCL’s website, the Lobbyists Registration System, products and client touch points to ensure accessibility and usability. 
• Monitor to ensure that identified solutions have the desired effects, or whether more accessibility features can be incorporated. 

The following paragraphs will aim to detail the efforts made towards each of these supporting action items. 

• Encourage the use of plain language for investigation reports and other OCL publications, such as guidance documents and interpretation bulletins.

OCL employees are striving to use plain language during their interactions with the public and the OCL’s public reports. For example, plain language is currently being used when updating the OCL’s interpretation bulletins.

As indicated earlier in this report, no formal training has been identified. However, the OCL recently published a guide for the use of plain language that is available on the OCL Intranet. Employees are encouraged to use it as needed.

• Retain an external resource to review and assess OCL’s website, the Lobbyists Registration System, products and client touch points from an Accessibility Lens.

In recent months, the OCL enlisted the services of the AAACT to assess the accessibility of the OCL’s website and Lobbyists Registration System (LRS). Each platform was assessed individually. The primary focus of the evaluation was on pages that were frequently accessed, top tasks and complex pages. Following each assessment, the AAACT provided a report which included recommendations and suggested actions to improve the accessibility of the website and of the LRS.

After carefully considering the reports, a management response will be developed, and action plans will be put in place to ensure that accessibility improvements are implemented in a timely manner. However, the OCL already initiated work on the recommendations, and several have been completed prior to the publishing of this report in December 2024.

• Explore solutions identified to simplify, when possible, OCL’s website, the Lobbyists Registration System, products and client touch points to ensure accessibility and usability.

As previously mentioned, the OCL enlisted the services of the AAACT to assess the accessibility of the OCL’s website and Lobbyists Registration System (LRS). Each platform was assessed individually. The primary focus of the evaluation was on pages that were frequently accessed, top tasks and complex pages. Following each assessment, the AAACT provided a report which included recommendations and suggested actions to improve the accessibility of the website and of the LRS.

After carefully considering the reports, a management response will be developed, and action plans will be put in place to ensure that accessibility improvements are implemented in a timely manner. However, the OCL already initiated work on the recommendations, and several have been completed prior to the publishing of this report in December 2024.

• Monitor to ensure that identified solutions have the desired effects, or whether more accessibility features can be incorporated.

As mentioned, the OCL enlisted the services of the AAACT to assess the accessibility of the OCL’s website and Lobbyists Registration System (LRS). Each platform was assessed individually. The primary focus of the evaluation was on pages that were frequently accessed, top tasks and complex pages. Following each assessment, the AAACT provided a report which included recommendations and suggested actions to improve the accessibility of the website and of the LRS.

Once changes and solutions to increase accessibility have been implemented, the OCL will evaluate if they have the desired effects and if more accessibility features can be added. This monitoring is planned to take place during the 2025-2026 fiscal year. 

Transportation

This section is not applicable to the OCL.

Consultations

Accessibility plan

When the OCL Accessibility Plan was being created, the staff and the public were consulted to ensure the approach in the preparation of this plan respected the “nothing about us without us” principle. This was done through an open survey on our website. Comments and next step recommendations received were integrated in our 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan.

Progress Report 2024

As described in the previous sections, the OCL implemented a number of supporting actions to reduce and eliminate barriers to accessibility. Since they were mainly related to our internal processes, we conducted a consultation with our staff in October 2024. The purpose of the consultation was to establish whether the supporting actions undertaken enhanced the OCL’s accessibility and identify changes to be made to remove and/or reduce obstacles and barriers to accessibility.

Survey format

In October 2024, OCL employees had the opportunity to complete an anonymous and voluntary 3 questions survey:

1. In 2023 and 2024, OCL continued to improve and maintain a high level of accessibility. Here is a list of the improvements made: 
   • Evaluate the accessibility of the OCL website to determine what changes have been completed.
   • Ensure employees have taken the CSPS course - “Addressing Disability Inclusion and Barriers to Accessibility”.
   • Document and review evacuation plan with disabled staff.
   • Continue to identify and implement workstations for persons with an impairment.
   • Promote accessibility-related tools, resources and events, including promoting and encouraging participation in National Accessibility Week activities.

Do you think these measures have improved accessibility at OCL? Please answer yes or no and explain your answer.

2. Do you have any other suggestions for improving accessibility within OCL? If so, which ones?
3. Do you have any comments or concerns about accessibility at OCL? If so, what are they?

Participants

Twenty-four (24) staff members took part in the consultation, representing around 67% of our workforce. As this consultation was carried out anonymously, it is impossible to establish the range of disabilities represented by the respondents. Furthermore, in an office of only 36 employees, it is impossible to identify the range of disabilities among our staff without breaching their privacy.

Results

All participants indicated that the actions listed in Question 1 had improved accessibility within the OCL. More specifically, several staff members indicated that these actions increased their awareness and understanding on accessibility.

With regard to Question 2, suggestions to improve accessibility at the OCL have been provided. These suggestions will be considered and added to our next plan on accessibility next year.

Finally, for Question 3, no concerns were raised. One comment was made to the fact that we need to ensure that we focus on removing barriers for all persons with disabilities and not only for those with a visual impairment. This comment will be taken into consideration going further.

Feedback

Since the implementation of its 2023-2025 Accessibility Plan, the OCL has not received any feedback related to the plan or to barriers encountered by people who have used our services.

Conclusion

The OCL recognizes the importance of reducing and eliminating barriers and obstacles to accessibility in order to achieve a more diverse workforce, a more accessible work environment and a more equitable approach to working with Canadians.

The main accessibility objective over the next few months will be to reduce and/or eliminate any barriers to accessibility that were identified in the accessibility evaluation of the OCL’s website and of the Lobbyists Registration System. Following this, we will conduct a more global consultation, targeting users to obtain their feedback. The feedback received during this consultation as well as the recommendations that results from it will be reflected in our next accessibility plan that will cover the 2025 to 2027 calendar years.

Despite the fact that diversity, equity and inclusion are at the heart of the OCL's priorities, we recognize that we have not been able to achieve certain goals and actions that were identified in our accessibility plan. We were unable to conduct an in-depth and broader consultation on our progress to remove barriers.

With limited resources and the workload associated with the Office’s mandate, including multiple reporting obligations, the OCL's workforce limits the implementation of the actions listed in its accessibility plan within the identified timeframes.

However, the Office will continue its efforts to achieve its goals of eliminating obstacles and barriers to accessibility within the OCL.