2024 Progress Report on the CRCC Accessibility Action Plan 2023–2026

Update on the Progress of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP's Accessibility Action Plan (2024)

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Note: The 2024 Progress Report on the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP (CRCC) Accessibility Action Plan 2023–2026 follows the requirements and guidelines provided in the Accessible Canada Act and the Accessible Canada Regulations.

The following Progress Report highlights the progress made on the goals outlined in the Accessibility Action Plan published on November 22, 2022. It describes the CRCC's accessibility practices and programs in relation to identifying, removing and preventing barriers. Over the last two years, the CRCC has addressed and removed some barriers across seven priority areas and continues to do so.

1. General

a. Accessibility commitment

The CRCC is committed to being a diverse, inclusive and accessible federal public service employer by creating a barrier-free workplace that prevents, identifies, and removes barriers while creating more consistent accessibility experiences in the following priority areas:

• Improve recruitment, retention and promotion of persons with disabilities.
• Enhance the accessibility of the built environment (i.e. the physical work environment).
• Make information and communication technology usable by all (including communication, other than information and communication technology).
• Equip public servants to design and deliver accessible programs and services.
• Build an accessibility-confident public service.

b. Feedback process

Please send your feedback to the CRCC's Executive Assistant to the Chairperson.

You can send your feedback by email or mail using the contact information listed below:

For more information on how you can send your feedback, see the description on our Accessibility feedback process page.

More information about accessibility in Canada is available on the Employment and Social Development Canada's website.

c. Alternate formats

You can use the contact information listed above to ask us for a copy of our feedback process description, or our action plan and progress report in these alternate formats: print, large print, Braille, audio or an electronic format that is compatible with adaptive technology that is intended to assist persons with disabilities. We will provide the format you ask for as soon as possible. Braille and audio formats may take up to 45 days. Print, large print and electronic formats may take up to 20 days.

2. Consultations 

A joint effort with the senior management team, the Diversity and Inclusion Champion, and the Human Resources Directorate contributed to the implementation of actions over the course of the second year of the CRCC's Accessibility Action Plan 2023–2026.

Consultations can also take various forms; feedback or comments are often obtained from the employee having a discussion on the matter with their manager.

3. Feedback received

The Accessibility Feedback Form has been available to the employees and the public since December 2022. The CRCC did not receive any feedback on actions identified or implemented in the past year.  

4. Areas in section 5 of the Accessible Canada Act

a. Diversity and inclusion at the CRCC

The current organizational Accessibility Action Plan was developed based on the goals identified in the Government of Canada's Accessibility Strategy on the key priority areas (employment, built environment, information and communication technology, programs and services). The Plan outlines three specific objectives:

1. Inclusive Hiring at the CRCC: A proactive approach.
2. Unconscious Bias Training: Laying the groundwork for making better staffing decisions.
3. Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport: Facilitating the movement of persons with disabilities into and within the CRCC.

The CRCC continues to implement tangible actions to increase awareness, change behaviours, and address systemic barriers. As part of its mandatory training, the CRCC mentioned in its previous progress report that the following courses from the Canada School of Public Service (CSPS) were added: W005 (INC105) – Understanding unconscious bias (for all employees at all levels) and H205 (COR120) – Inclusive Hiring Practices for a Diverse Workforce (for hiring managers and Human Resources advisors).

Since the last progress report, the CSPS has made changes to its course offerings. In response to these changes, the CRCC has modified its list of required training for employees and managers and the list now includes the following three courses: INC123 – Moving from Bias to Inclusion, COR120 – Inclusive Hiring Practices for a Diverse Workforce, and INC120 – Disability Management and Workplace Wellness.

These courses aim to increase awareness and ultimately assist hiring managers in reducing barriers in their staffing processes, while encouraging self-awareness regarding staffing decisions.

Notices are sent out periodically informing CRCC staff that the required training must be completed. The CRCC anticipates 80% of employees will complete the training courses by March 31, 2026.

The CRCC implemented the Government of Canada (GC) Workplace Accessibility Passport in 2023 to help federal public service employees get the tools, supports and measures they need to perform at their best and succeed in the workplace. The Passport facilitates recruitment, retention, and career advancement for persons with disabilities.

Also, the CRCC continues to draw from pools of student candidates with disabilities from the Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP) and other available pools of candidates with disabilities to staff vacant positions. The FSWEP employment opportunity features an onboarding process, training, activities, and support services for both students and hiring managers.

b. Employment

This area of action includes workplace-specific aspects, such as hiring interviews, training, performance evaluations, and requests for accommodation. Examples of obstacles in this area include job offers that are not formatted for use by assistive technologies like screen readers, the assumption that a person cannot do certain types of work due to their disability, or imposing job restrictions that do not recognize systemic barriers to access to higher education or specific experience and knowledge.

To improve the recruitment, retention and promotion of persons with disabilities, the CRCC has identified the following actions:

• Closing the 2% gap between the workforce availability of persons with disabilities and their representation within the CRCC by March 31, 2024, by:
  • leveraging existing Government of Canada programs;
  • identifying persons with disabilities in existing pools to hiring managers; and
  • reviewing representation, identifying gaps in specific occupational groups, and creating targets.
• Informing employees about, and promoting the use of, Shared Services Canada's Lending Library Service Pilot Project, which offers personalized supports for students and other short‑term employees with disabilities or injuries, including adaptive technology, services and tools.
• Co-developing a Mentorship Plus Program with interested employees of employment equity and equity-seeking groups.
• Hosting speakers from the Federal Speakers' Forum on Lived Experience twice yearly.
• Increasing management awareness to ensure they are equipped to support their employees with disabilities in their work, performance, and career aspirations.
• Ensuring persons with disabilities have equal access to career advancement opportunities.

Employees are informed weekly of public service-wide events on equity, diversity and inclusion, as well as on topics related to accessibility and persons with disabilities. Events, information sessions, and workshops delivered to public servants are posted on the internal electronic newsletter that is published weekly and sent by email to employees.

The Public Service Commission creates pools of students with disabilities for job opportunities for the FSWEP. The CRCC continues to use these pools for future student job opportunities, as well as other available pools of candidates with disabilities to staff vacant positions.

The CRCC adopted the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport in 2023. The Passport facilitates accommodation processes by ensuring that candidates and employees with disabilities receive the tools and support in a timely and efficient manner, so employees can succeed in the workplace.

The Passport and related information are available to employees on the CRCC's internal website. All new hires to the CRCC are informed of their right to be accommodated through their letter of offer. It mentions the use of the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport and the documenting of barriers and the solutions to address these barriers (such as tools and support measures), as well as the fact that the Passport facilitates conversations between the employee and their manager to identify the solutions to be implemented to best equip the employee to succeed in their job. The letter of offer also informs the employee that additional information on accommodation is available in the Treasury Board Secretariat's Directive on the Duty to Accommodate.

c. The built environment

The built environment pillar focuses on the physical work environment, and the equipment and tools available within. All individuals deserve access to an equitable and safe work environment.

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) is responsible for managing and providing government organizations and parliamentarians with federal property and accommodation services. In support of this, PSPC is undertaking an evaluation of the physical accessibility of federal buildings in consultation with persons with disabilities.

Persons with disabilities report challenges in their workplaces, such as a lack of automatic door openers, poor signage and wayfinding. In the first survey on the development of the Accessibility Strategy, several respondents noted that the physical workspace does not take into account invisible disabilities. To enhance the accessibility of the built environment, the CRCC is committed to:

• Pursuing two approaches when considering how to meet the Accessibility Strategy and comply with the Accessibility Action Plan: applying requirements (directives, leases, etc.), and solicitating and considering practical and lived experiences.
• Determining and considering the exact relationships and partners implicated by the current leases, to include, among others, the CRCC, the landlord, PSPC, employees with disabilities, clients with disabilities, and other government departments.
• Reviewing the terms of current agreements for built environments related to accessibility and ensuring that such terms are assessed against the standards cited by the Strategy and the Directive.
• Engaging with appropriate partner groups about the overall built environment to include persons with disabilities, to determine areas of concern, and to ensure the suitability of established standards, or to establish higher standards.
• Internally publicizing the efforts to engage with appropriate partners and solicit their input.

To align with the Directive on the Management of Procurement, and to comply with any legal obligations arising from the Accessible Canada Act to ensure a barrier-free Canada, the CRCC uses the form Justification on the inclusion of accessibility criteria in procurement (good or services) in procurement requirements, as applicable and as required.

PSPC manages the lease with a private business on behalf of the CRCC and its occupancy instruments. For any issues with the building, the CRCC can submit a ticket to the PSPC National Service Call Centre and engage with PSPC Property and Facility Manager. The PSPC Client Accommodation Services Advisor supports the CRCC for strategic accommodations requirements, such as the lease renewal.

Occupational Health and Safety Committee meetings are held monthly and any elements that may impact employees in the built environment, to include persons with disabilities, are discussed to determine areas of concern, and to ensure the suitability of established standards, or to establish higher standards. The information is disseminated to employees thereafter, if needed.

When changes to the CRCC physical environment are being planned, are in progress, and/or have been executed, employees are advised as and when required; information is usually disseminated via an email to employees (e.g. delivery and installation of new sit-stand desks and electrician site visits).

d. Information and communications technologies

The Accessibility Strategy's overarching goal for communications and technology is that "Government of Canada clients and employees can access and use all information and communications technology, regardless of ability or disability." The research done by the Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Advisory Committee identifies both barriers to use of technology and an action plan to overcome these obstacles to make the CRCC a more accessible workspace.

Barriers to communications and technology have been identified by Canadians in the workplace through the Accessible Canada – Creating new federal accessibility legislation: What we learned from Canadians report. For example, this includes information being impossible to access, read or understand, due to the way it is presented, or because of the technology and equipment being used to access it. Furthermore, civilians involved in the research pointed out that the purchase of computers and technology is an area where government spending creates some of the biggest barriers for persons with disabilities.

The CRCC looks to courses like the Accessibility, Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) Program as an opportunity for the CRCC's supervisory staff to undergo sessions on adaptive technology, job accommodations, accessibility testing and more. The AAACT Program's goal is to "help integrate employees with disabilities, injuries and ergonomic requirements and who require access to systems, programs, information, computers and computer resources."

The range of services the AAACT offers stretches from hands-on training for technicians, to web content evaluations, converting documents to multiple formats, and providing needs-based assessments. With this course being required of all supervisory staff, a collective understanding of adaptive computer technology would be the standard here at the CRCC. This would ensure that those seeking accommodations are met by colleagues who retain some background knowledge of adaptive computer technology, so that the "gatekeepers" of the accommodation process are comfortable and familiar with the range of technological accommodation possibilities.

In October 2024, the CRCC included the CSPS course INC1-V36 – Workplace Accommodation Consultation Series: Acquisition of IT-Related Adaptive Products and Services in its list of mandatory and required training for all employees. Employees and managers are periodically reminded to complete the required training, and it is expected that more than 80% of employees will complete the training course mentioned above by March 31, 2026.

Another way to ensure that the CRCC is a comfortable and accommodating workspace is to embed accessibility into our standardized processes. The Digital Accessibility Toolkit is a great resource to rely on; for technology and communications, accessible standardized processes might look like:

• Using standardized heading styles rather than bolding words;
• Ensuring hyperlinks are titled rather than copied and pasted URLs;
• Avoiding the use of text boxes;
• Ensuring photos (e.g. emails, CRCC website) have "alternative text."

To make information and communication technology usable by all, the CRCC committed to:

• Requiring that its managers and IT staff attend comprehensive AAACT sessions to familiarize themselves with adaptations and troubleshoot their application to the CRCC's technology.
• Ensuring that the CRCC's webpage/InfoExpress is fully accessible through both desktop and mobile devices.
• Circulating and implementing new standards for shared documents in alignment with the Digital Accessibility Toolkit.

The CRCC will review and implement these measures over the next year, and it will provide more information on these measures in the next progress report.

e. Communication, other than information and communication technology

In an accessibility-confident public service, public servants will understand what accessibility means and why it matters and have the resources to make the public service a more accessible and inclusive employer and service provider.

To build an accessibility-confident public service, the CRCC is committed to:

1. Developing and disseminating communication products to raise the awareness of CRCC employees.
2. Inviting the Accessibility Commissioner to present to the CRCC.
3. Ensuring all its processes relating to the employment, retention, and/or promotion of an employee with a disability use inclusive language and do not create barriers for persons with disabilities.

In the next year, the CRCC will aim to develop various communication products on accessibility and make them available to employees.

To ensure that the CRCC's processes related to recruitment, hiring and retention of employees with disabilities, managers and human resources staff will maximize the use of the tools and mechanisms in place to minimize or remove barriers for all equity-seeking groups. This includes accessing pools of persons with disabilities for student hirings, mandatory training on unconscious bias in recruitment for hiring managers (a course given by the CSPS) and the use of a questionnaire to evaluate assessment methods for biases and barriers that disadvantage equity-seeking groups.

f. The procurement of goods, services and facilities

Although the CRCC has not received feedback on specific barriers in the area of procurement of goods, services and facilities, it has made progress in removing potential barriers by including sections about accessibility in its contracting documents. For example, in the request for proposal for the purchase of a Case and Investigation Management and Reporting System, the CRCC has increased its requirements for accessibility based on discussions with PSPC.

g. The design and delivery of programs and services

To equip the CRCC's employees to design and deliver accessible programs and services, the CRCC has committed to:

• Considering the feasibility of developing a client-satisfaction data strategy for the services delivered directly to the public.
• Considering new ways to monitor how accessibility influences the discretionary functions of the CRCC's mandate when making decisions with respect to public complaints.
• Consulting with external organizations of persons with disabilities and disability advocacy organizations to assess the CRCC's current programs, with specific attention to service providers to the public.
• Continuing to consult with the above-indicated organizations and groups when designing and implementing new programs and services.

The CRCC will progressively be reviewing and developing these measures over the course of the next year. More information on these advancements will be conveyed in the next progress report.

5. Moving forward

The CRCC has had the opportunity over the past two years to learn and grow through the implementation of the actions outlined in these progress reports.

As a small federal organization, the CRCC makes maximum use of its limited resources to address identified barriers and measure progress.

We remain committed to learning and leveraging ideas from larger federal organizations and departments, including tools and practices that improve accessibility in the workplace. 

The CRCC will continue to monitor and measure its progress to ensure we are meeting the accessibility goals and removing the remaining barriers that were identified in the CRCC Accessibility Action Plan 2023–2026.