Accessibilility

The Tribunal’s accessibility mandate

The Accessible Canada Act came into force in 2019. This law gives the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal an additional role.

The Act requires federally-regulated organizations to find and remove any barriers to accessibility for people with disabilities. The goal is a barrier-free Canada for everyone.

People who think that an organization is not removing barriers can file a complaint with the Accessibility Commissioner. The Commissioner decides if they have not complied with the Act.

If someone disagrees with the Accessibility Commissioner’s decision, they can appeal it. The Tribunal will deal with most of these appeals. 

The Tribunal does not handle all appeals. For example, if a complaint concerns a parliamentary entity, such as the Senate or House of Commons, both the complaint and any appeal will be handled by the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board. 

The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal only hears appeals of decisions made by the Accessibility Commissioner.