CAN-ASC-1.1.1 Part 1: Employment: Systems, Policies, and the Employment Life Cycle
Scope:
Note: The title, designation number, scope and project need of this Notice of Intent (originally published on December 13, 2022) was updated by the responsible SDO on September 10, 2024.
The purpose of standard CAN-ASC-1.1.1 Part 1 is to ensure the technical requirements for employment lifecycle are equity-based. This requires going beyond minimum technical specifications.
There are common areas where people with disabilities may experience barriers in employment. These areas include, but are not limited to:
- inaccessible policies and practices that result in lower job retention rates and affect career advancement;
- inaccessible recruitment practices, hiring, and onboarding;
- a lack of information and awareness on accessibility, including a lack of knowledge on available accommodations and training;
- difficulty navigating the accessibility support (accommodation) system, including seeking accommodations and participating in inclusive decision-making; and,
- lack of accessibility considerations in transition planning, including moving from role to role within an organization.
To address these barriers, this standard will define the requirements related to providing an accessible employment lifecycle, including but not limited to:
- creating accessible policies that provide structural support, provide leadership on accessibility, and strengthen job retention and career advancement for all workers;
- requirements for senior management and their responsibility to provide accommodations and facilitate an accessible, inclusive workplace;
- requirements for accessible recruitment, hiring, and onboarding that enables organizations to reach qualified applicants; and
- information on an inclusive and accessible employment system that spans the entire employment lifecycle from recruitment to job exit.
This standard will align with relevant technical requirements found in one other Accessibility Standards Canada standard:
- CAN/ASC - EN 301 549: Accessibility requirements for ICT products and services (EN 301 549: 2021, IDT).
Project need:
Accessibility Standards Canada was created under the Accessible Canada Act. Its mandate is to prevent, identify, and remove barriers to accessibility for Canadians with disabilities. In pursuit of this mandate, Accessibility Standards Canada develops standards based on the needs of people with disabilities. These needs have been identified in consultations with Canadians with disabilities, including the Governor in Council appointed Board of Directors, who are primarily people with disabilities and have approved the development of this standard.
Accessibility Standards Canada’s standards apply to federally regulated entities, including the federally regulated private-sector, as defined within the Accessible Canada Act. Accessibility Standards Canada also works with Provincial and Territorial partners to identify additional stakeholder needs across Canada in order to increase harmonization.
In addition to these identified needs, Accessibility Standards Canada standards are developed following the principle of “nothing without us.” This means that Accessibility Standards Canada standards are developed with:
- research that has been led by people with disabilities or lived experience.
- the participation of people with disabilities on our technical committees. These committees produce equity-based. requirements that take into account the needs and perspectives of people with disabilities.
This also means that the public review process for this standard will be accessible, allowing even more people with disabilities to be part of the standards development process.
Note: The information provided above was obtained by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) and is provided as part of a centralized, transparent notification system for new standards development. The system allows SCC-accredited Standards Development Organizations (SDOs), and members of the public, to be informed of new work in Canadian standards development, and allows SCC-accredited SDOs to identify and resolve potential duplication of standards and effort.
Individual SDOs are responsible for the content and accuracy of the information presented here. The text is presented in the language in which it was provided to SCC.