Hey there and I’m Scott Savoy at the Sterling Creations desk.
Happy holiday weekend to everyone and a happy Easter to those who celebrate it.
For today, our president Donna J. Jodhan expresses her thoughts on the so-called third party trauma within the Canadian Government.
Give this a read and send your thoughts to donnajodhan@sterlingcreations.ca.
Donna would love to hear from you.
Enjoy your weekend.
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The Third-Party Trauma How the Canadian Government’s Dependence on Outsourced developers Fails Its Citizens with Disabilities
By Donna J. Jodhan
In a modern, digital world, the accessibility of government services should be a given, especially when it comes to something as crucial as submitting an application. However, many departments within the Canadian Federal Government continue to rely on third-party developers for their website design and digital systems. This reliance is turning out to be a significant oversight, as the third-party developers are often unaware, or simply indifferent, to the importance of accessibility and usability for people with disabilities. The result? A digital experience that is frustrating, cumbersome, and, at times, entirely unusable for those who need it most.
It’s not just a minor inconvenience; it’s a barrier to opportunity. Applicants with disabilities are often unable to independently navigate or submit their applications. Whether it’s due to poorly designed forms, incompatible interfaces, or outright inaccessible features, these citizens are left to struggle in a system that should be facilitating their participation in Canadian society. The third-party companies involved, while profiting from these contracts, are frequently oblivious to the specific needs of users with disabilities, leaving them unable to answer concerns, address questions, or make necessary adjustments.
The consequences of this oversight are far-reaching. Citizens with disabilities who rely on assistive technology or accessibility features cannot even access the forms they need to apply for services, jobs, or benefits. These individuals are often forced to seek help from outside sources or wait for in-person assistance, something that delays and complicates processes that should be streamlined.
For these individuals, the “help” from the third-party companies is often nonexistent. When they encounter issues, they are left without direct avenues for resolving their problems, and many government departments, which contract these companies, fail to intervene. It is a situation where the system is not built with inclusivity in mind, leaving vulnerable individuals to bear the brunt of this digital divide. Just ask the Privy Council Office, which has yet to demonstrate how it is addressing the accessibility needs of Canadians with disabilities, despite these ongoing issues.
And it’s not just application forms that are problematic. Other departments have produced online videos that leave viewers in the dark—literally. Videos are rolled out with critical questions displayed on the screen without any audio description, making it impossible for people with visual impairments to engage with the content in any meaningful way. How is this acceptable in 2025?
Yet, we shouldn’t be quick to place the blame solely on the third-party developers. The real accountability lies with the departments that hire them. These departments are fully responsible for ensuring that the systems they implement are accessible, functional, and designed with inclusivity in mind. Time and again, we’ve seen the Canadian government outsource development without clear guidelines or meaningful oversight. It’s easy to point fingers at third-party companies, but the departments that contract them are equally at fault for not prioritizing accessibility and failing to ensure the systems they deploy are usable for all Canadians.
The time for inaction is over. The Canadian Federal Government must take immediate steps to ensure that third-party contracts come with strict accessibility requirements and that these requirements are enforced from the beginning. Government departments need to take responsibility for the digital experiences of all Canadians, especially those with disabilities. Those who are charged with providing services to citizens cannot continue to ignore the needs of marginalized communities.
It is time for a change. Not tomorrow, not next year, but now. The barriers to accessibility in Canada’s digital government services must be addressed, and it’s up to the departments, not the third-party companies, to ensure these barriers are eliminated. There is no excuse for a system that leaves its most vulnerable citizens behind.
Image = a photo of a pair of hands reaching out of a laptop screen, holding up a sign that says, “Help!”
To learn more about me as an award winning sight loss coach and advocate visit www.donnajodhan.com
