Federally Regulated Organizations with more than 100 employees will be required to publish their accessibility plans by June 1, 2023, in accordance with the Accessible Canada Act, 2019, unless exempt.
These plans, like the those required provincially under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, aim to eliminate barriers for employees with disabilities in the built environment, information, communication, and transportation areas of an organization. Importantly, the Federal legislation specifically invites the involvement of such persons (with disabilities in the workplace), to be involved in the formulation of such plans. Once finalized, the plan must be published in the workplace and updated every three (3) years.
Provincially, in Ontario, the deadline for having similar plans has long since passed but enforcement has been seemingly low. Time will therefore tell whether the Federal response to enforcement will be more active than the legislations Provincial counterpart.
