GC Workplace Accessibility Passport Newsletter - Issue 16 Newsletter

Welcome

“Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted, counts.”

Albert Einstein

The GC Workplace Accessibility Passport newsletter is back!

Much has happened since Edition 15, so to those of you reading the Passport newsletter for the first time, a warm welcome! To our returning readers, we hope to bring you the same high-quality bulletin you have come to rely on with a new twist! Read on to find out more!

A renewed mandate for OPSA

Budget 2024 announced a two-year renewal of the Office of Public Service Accessibility’s (OPSA) mandate. OPSA has an opportunity to continue supporting federal organizations by focusing on measurement, guidance on horizontal and complex workplace accommodation issues, and the development of service standards for the delivery of workplace solutions.

An OPSA and AAACT partnership for the Passport

Another exciting new development is a brand new partnership with Shared Services Canada’s Accessibility Accommodation and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) Directorate. This close collaboration will ensure the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport program, including the newsletter, Passport resources, training and tools remain sustainable and vibrant. The AAACT will shortly undertake a new round of testing of the digital version of the Passport, prior to the upcoming pilot this fall. AAACT and OPSA will work hand in hand over the next few months to chart the path forward for the Passport and its users.

Reflect, reset, and renew

Finally, as the federal public service begins a new phase in the prescribed return to the workplace, let’s use common sense and empathy, as managers and HR professionals. Let’s reflect on the Einstein quote at the beginning of this edition in the context of accessibility:

• Accessibility should be a reflex we all have in everything we do because even a small gesture that benefits few is worth making. The difference your gesture will make in the lives of these few will not necessarily be quantifiable, but it will be meaningful. Moreover, we have all heard of or encountered accessibility improvements that benefit everyone – think about automatic door openers, captioning, or plain language. Accessibility is a fundamental human right.
• Reset by prioritizing disability inclusion to embrace the full power of our differences.
• Renew your approach to workplace adjustments by making the Passport the instrument of culture change in your organization.

An updated Word version of the Passport was published on Canada.ca. This new and improved version incorporates feedback from a multitude of users over the last couple of years. It should be more accessible and easier to complete, thanks also to revised instructions.

Visit the Passport pages on Canada.ca

Luna Bengio

Editor

Adopters’ Corner

The Digital Passport

Progress on the digital solution for the GC Workplace Accessibility Passportcontinues. The Privacy Impact Assessment for the Passport program was completed and provided to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. The Personal Information Bank (PIB) for the Passport is now publicly available (Government of Canada Workplace Accessibility Passport Personal Information Bank – TBS PCE 702). The PIB describes personal information used in support of the Passport as well as the uses, disclosures, and retention of this information.

AAACT conducted two rounds of accessibility compliance and user testing in the spring and summer. The application development team implemented several changes in preparation for the pilot that will take place from October to November, after a third round of AAACT testing. Pilot organizations include Agriculture Canada, Canadian Heritage, Canadian Transportation Agency, Health Canada, Public Health Agency of Canada, and Shared Services Canada. Stay tuned for pilot results in a future edition of the newsletter. Feedback from the pilot will generate valuable data on the application’s performance, usability, accessibility, and potential areas for improvement prior to enterprise launch.

The Passport Adopter Community of Practice

The Adopter Community of Practice (COP) will receive regular bulletin updates to ensure organizational representatives remain abreast of developments and informational resources. A training and development working group will also be established to support representatives with guidance for employees and managers. On Tuesday, October 8, a Passport Information Session especially designed for organizational representatives will be offered to the Adopter COP. In addition, a third cohort of facilitators will be trained to deliver information sessions about the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport this fall.

The Continuum

Accessibility and workplace adjustments represent points on the continuum of establishing an inclusive, barrier‑free workplace in which all persons have equal access to opportunities. While separate and distinct, accessibility and individual adjustments are, however, related. At one end of the continuum, accessibility is about ensuring that workplaces, by design, are accessible and usable by all. In contrast, workplace adjustments are intended to equip individuals who move, perceive, or understand differently with equivalent means and solutions to do their job. The more accessible the work environment becomes; the less barriers will get in the way of full participation and success for employees with disabilities. Yet some employees will always need tools, measures, or services to make the most of accessibility features.

In the federal public service, each organization’s Accessibility Plan lists the actions the organization is taking to proactively remove accessibility barriers.

On the other hand, the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport aims to foster collaboration between an employee and their manager to expedite the implementation of solutions to barriers encountered by the employee at work.

In summary, accessibility is a broad, proactive approach to creating an inclusive environment, while workplace accommodation is a specific, reactive approach to addressing the needs of an individual employee with a disability.

Is it sufficient to ensure people with disabilities feel like they belong? Let’s just say that accessibility and easy access to individual adjustments go a long way to create a true sense of inclusion. However, in our categorization-loving society, we view difference as a flaw and continue to classify people according to individual characteristics. That is the kind of mindset we need to change. Not every disability is apparent. But whether you notice something or not, reach out to colleagues, treat them like you yourself would like to be treated.

Interview with Angèle Charlebois

For this edition of the Passport newsletter, Luna Bengio spoke with Angèle Charlebois, a business analyst at Canadian Heritage, about her experience navigating the public service with a hearing ear service dog and her thoughts on the path forward for welcoming service dogs into the federal public service.

Luna: Can you tell me a bit about your experiences bringing a service dog into the workplace?

Angèle: I have never had an unpleasant experience integrating my service dogs into the workplace. Service dogs for people who are deaf, deafened, or hard of hearing do not necessarily work in public like a guide dog would. Milo, my service dog, works mostly at home. She alerts me to sounds that I do not hear when I am at home without my hearing aid. When I am in public, she does not alert me to sounds; I bring her with me because I must maintain my bond with her. Our bond would be seriously affected if I left her home all day.

When I applied for my first service dog in 2010, my director at the time asked me “do you have to bring her to the workplace”? I explained the importance of maintaining a close relationship with the service dog.

Luna: How have you dealt with situations where people in the office might be afraid of dogs?

Angèle: One of my previous managers was very afraid of dogs because a dog had attacked her when she was a child. I think service dogs are the best to have around people who are afraid of dogs because they are trained to socialize with people, to stay quiet and calm. That manager ended up petting my dog and became less afraid.

Luna: As an employee with a service dog, do you have any concerns?

Angèle: So far, the only thing I have had to do is show the ID card issued by the service dog training organization. There were no issues, I just came to work with my dog. I am concerned that as more employees seek to bring service dogs to work in the public service,  I will be asked to prove that my dog is truly trained to be in the workplace.

Luna: Can you tell me a little more about this ID card that you are referring to?

Angèle: This ID card shows my name, my dog’s identification number, and a picture of her and me. The card was issued by the Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides which trained my dog. There are very few federal or provincial guidelines about service dogs. People can go to fake websites where they can answer some questions, send money and they will send you a vest and an ID card that says you can take your dog out in public, even if the dog has not been properly trained. I would caution people against using sites like these.

Luna: I am very interested in what happens when you and Milo are in the workplace. What does she do for you?

Angèle: Well, I can speak about Candy, my former dog since I only got Milo in February 2020, a month before most public servants became remote workers. Once the pandemic started, we no longer went to the workplace, restaurants, the grocery store, or the gym. Milo lost a bit of her public access training. When I worked for Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), I trained Candy to recognize the two different fire alarm sounds. I obtained recordings of the fire alarm sounds from occupational health and safety. I trained Candy to alert me differently for each sound. For the first sound which signals to prepare for evacuation, I taught Candy to push on my leg with her nose. For the sound that signals that it is time to evacuate, she learned to put her two front paws on me.

That is an example of workplace-related training that was not part of what my service dog originally learned. Other than that, hearing ear service dogs like Milo and Candy mostly sleep and snore.

I familiarize my dog with the office and with the members of my team who really appreciate it. I tell them to hide on the other side of the wall and call my name to train Milo to recognize the repetitive sound of my name. I work from home 5 days a week, so I do not need to train Milo to recognize the fire alarm sounds at the office.

Luna: Do you have a full time telework arrangement now?

Angèle: Yes, I have a full time telework arrangement, but I also have an assigned workstation at the office in case I have to go in. That is important since in an open concept workspace, Milo’s dog hair would be all over the place.

Luna: Well, thank you for sharing that because it is a very good way to illustrate an accommodation. You have an assigned workstation not necessarily because you need it, but because other people who might sit at the same workstation could have allergies. Do you think that with an increased presence in different workplaces, schools that train service dogs should find diverse ways to train the dogs so that they can be a better support in the workplace?

Angèle: Training centers train dogs to recognize different sounds such as the telephone ringer. The sounds at home or at work are not necessarily the same. Therefore, training centers train the dog handler how to train the dog, and hearing ear service dogs are so well trained that they immediately react when they hear a repetitive sound. Training my dog in the sounds that are personal to me in my home is easy. I do it once and that is it.

I know some schools for guide dogs will come to their clients’ home and go with them on their route to work. If I need support to teach my dog new sounds at work, a representative from the training school can come to my workplace and discuss issues with management, with myself, and with colleagues.

Luna: I know you offer a lot of awareness sessions on inclusion of persons with disabilities, but have you had to do specific educating about service dogs?

Angèle: Yes, I do every single day. When I am on public transit, dog lovers will instinctively reach down to pet, and I have to tell them please don’t pet my dog. It starts a conversation, and I explain to them why. For me it is not as essential as for someone who has a diabetic alert dog or a guide dog because those dogs save lives. It is the same thing for people who have epilepsy, the dogs can sense when their owner is going to have a seizure, but if they are distracted by people, they are not going to pay attention to their owner. However, Milo can be distracted, I do not want that to happen because I need to preserve her training.

Luna: How do we avoid situations where managers and HR professionals are asking for more documentation, more proof to allow service dogs in the workplace?

Angèle: I think that a card from a certified training school should be enough. In my case, I can also provide the trainer’s email address. Again, there is that trust issue. Employees will still need to do their due diligence to create that trust.

Luna: Thank you so much for sharing, Angèle.

News and Resources

Results of Progress Report Analysis

The Office of Public Service Accessibility (OPSA) conducted an analysis of accessibility plan progress reports submitted by GC organizations in 2023, to gain high-level insights into accessibility gaps, trends, and promising practices**.** Compared to results from the 2023 accessibility plan analysis, significantly more organizations reported implementing the GC Workplace Accessibility Passport. However, the quality of accessibility measurement remains low across the GC. To support improved accessibility measurement, OPSA added a new data and measurement page to the accessibility hub.

OPSA and StatCan are also co-hosting a series of virtual accessibilitymeasurement workshops. These workshops aim to provide accessibility leads working on accessibility plans and progress reports with practical, hands-on training to improve their organization’s capacity to measure progress related to accessibility.

For more information about these workshops, email Accessibility.Accessibilite@tbs-sct.gc.ca

Accessibility Plan Feedback Mechanisms

As required by the Accessible Canada Act (ACA), GC departments and agencies established an accessibility feedback mechanism along with their accessibility plan. These mechanisms offer a vital opportunity for organizations to learn more about the barriers and experiences that people have when interacting with their organization. The feedback offers insights into how organizations can improve accessibility.

Never miss an opportunity to promote and encourage the use of your organization’s accessibility plan feedback mechanism. Take the time to review your organization’s accessibility plan, progress report, and to offer constructive comments.

Reports you may have missed

Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund Final Report

Established in 2019 with an investment of $10 million over five years, the Centralized Enabling Workplace Fund (CEWF) supported several projects designed to advance workplace accommodation for persons with disabilities in the federal public service. OPSA published the Fund’s final report with recommendations on next steps to maintain the momentum around culture change.

Employment Equity Report

The most recent Employment Equity Act Report featured notable data on the current state of representation for persons with disabilities. Of the four employment equity groups, persons with disabilities remain the only group not meeting workforce availability. While representation of persons with disabilities has increased to 6.9%, this figure remains below workforce availability of 9.2%. Hiring employees with disabilities is one of the most effective ways to promote inclusion and foster a positive attitude in the workplace. The report spotlights the Passport as one of the initiatives the Government of Canada is leading to create a more diverse, inclusive, and accessible public service.

Chief Accessibility Officer’s First Report

another notable report released in February 2024 was Canada’s Chief Accessibility Officer Stephanie Cadieux’s first report on the progress realized under the Accessible Canada Act (ACA). You can read the report here:  Everyone’s business: Accessibility in Canada - Report from the Chief AccessibilityOfficer, 2023

Accessibility Tips

Without a Mouse

Before you even ask users whether an application, a PowerPoint presentation, or website is accessible, try unplugging your mouse or disconnecting your trackpad. If you cannot truly navigate through the webpage, edit the presentation, or interact with the application, using only the keyboard, you are confronted with inaccessible digital content. It is time to conduct more in-depth accessibility assessments!

Why is keyboard navigation essential for digital accessibility?

Adaptive technologies such as screen readers, speech recognition, or switch devices, can only either operate via the keyboard or rely on emulating keyboard controls.

Even if you do not use any adaptive technologies, many interactions with the computer become easier and faster using keyboard commands only. Imagine the increased efficiency and productivity you can gain from using simple keystrokes instead of moving and clicking a mouse. Now, think about the benefits of accessible digital content to those who use adaptive technologies.

To get you started on developing the muscle memory of using keyboard commands instead of a mouse or trackpad, here are a few examples:

• tab – move between focus areas on the page, for example links, form controls, buttons, media player controls. Shift together with Tab does the same in reverse.
• enter or return – activate a link or control.
• spacebar – activate a button or checkbox.
• Arrow keys – move between radio buttons; scroll the page up/down and left/right.
• Alt + F4 closes an active Window or program.
• In a Word document, press Ctrl + Home to go to the beginning of a document, Ctrl + End to go to the end of the document.
• In MS Teams, press Ctrl + Shift +K to raise your hand, Ctrl +Shift + M to mute or unmute your microphone, Ctrl + Shift + E to bring up the screen sharing options.

Here are some useful links:

• Windows Keyboard Shortcuts- Microsoft Support
• Keyboard Shortcuts in Word - Microsoft Support
• Keyboard Shortcuts in Excel - Microsoft Support

Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans

In this article, Leslie Newell from Crown Indigenous Relations, and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) highlights some considerations and resources around Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans.

In the hybrid workplace, personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) are more important than ever. Most employees have unassigned seating making it harder to determine who is in the workspace at a given time and what supports they might need to evacuate in an emergency.

A PEEP is a personal plan of action in emergency situations that describes:

• The specific support required by each employee with a disability in order to safely evacuate the work location in an emergency.
• How to provide emergency information such as alerts and instructions in a timely and accessible manner.
• How to safely remain outside the work location when needed.
• How to safely return to the workstation or how to continue to an alternate work location.

Employees with service dogs should also take their dog into consideration when preparing their PEEP.

• Evacuation plans should include Emergency Response Plans (IERP) that address the building the employee works in and what happens if they travel to another building for work, for example, for a meeting.
• Organizations are responsible for the health and safety of employees in the workplace. While it is important for employees to prepare for emergency situations, Occupational Health and Safety professionals in the organization should provide support and implement measures prescribed by current policy and legislation.

Several resources are available to help individuals develop their own PEEP,  including:

• Guide for Assisting Individuals with Disabilities in an Emergency | Diversity and Access Office (stanford.edu)  (English only)
• 01-Preparing-a-PEEP-for-Employees.pdf (disabilityaccessconsultants.com.au)(English only)

Mark Your Calendars

AAACT Training Events

For more information about the following events, visit the GC AccessibilityTraining and Events / Formation et événements du GC sur l’accessibilité - GCpedia  .

• October 1, 2024 – Document Accessibility Workshop (English)
• October 2, 2024 - Document Accessibility Workshop (French)
• October 8, 2024 - Essentials for GC managers and human resources professionals: best practices in accessibility, workplace adjustments and job accommodation (English)
• October 9, 2024 - Essentials for GC managers and human resources professionals: best practices in accessibility, workplace adjustments and job accommodation (French)
• October 15, 2024 - Learning session: Understanding digital accessibility and disability inclusion (English)
• October 16, 2024 - Learning session: Understanding digital accessibility and disability inclusion (French)
• November 20, 2024 - Learning session: Understanding digital accessibility and disability inclusion (French )
• November 22, 2024 - Overview of accessibility features on smartphones and adaptive technology in the workplace (English )
• November 26, 2024 - Document Accessibility Workshop (English )
• November 27, 2024 - Document Accessibility Workshop (French )
• November 29, 2024 - Overview of accessibility features on smartphones and adaptive technology in the workplace (French )
• December 10, 2024 - Essentials for GC managers and human resources professionals: best practices in accessibility, workplace adjustments and job accommodation (English)
• December 11, 2024 - Essentials for GC managers and human resources professionals: best practices in accessibility, workplace adjustments and job accommodation (French)

Other workshops

National Managers Community (NMC)

• National Series: Top 3 Things Managers Should Know about the Workplace Accessibility Passport – October 15, 2024

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). Watch for NDEAM events and take action to raise awareness and improve employment prospects for people with disabilities across the public service.

Contact us for more information about the AAACT Newsletter at our email: aaact-aatia@ssc-spc.gc.ca