AODA/WCAG Compliance

Under The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), all Not for Profit websites must be accessible by people with disabilities.

AODA regulations are designed to make web content accessible to a wide audience of people with disabilities.

AODA regulations are designed to make web content accessible to a wide audience of people with disabilities

• Blindness and low vision
• Deafness and hearing loss
• Learning disabilities
• Cognitive limitation
• Speech disabilities
• Photosensitivity
• And, any combinations of those

Who Must Comply with AODA

• A private or non-profit organization with 50+ employees; or
• A public sector organization.

WCAG Website Compliance

The AODA compliance standards require organizations to comply with the Website Content and Accessibility Guideline (WCAG) 2.0.

WCAG standards cover four main areas:

• Users must be able to perceive the web content displayed
• Users must be able to operate the website interface
• Users must be able to understand the information presented
• Website content must continue to remain accessible as it evolves

WCAG 2.0 requirements fall under three levels: A, AA, AAA. Level A is the simplest, defined just as basic website accessibility.

As of 2016, all organizations must meet Level A requirements.

On January 1, 2021, all public websites and web content must meet Level AA requirements.

To learn what your organization needs to do in order to prepare for this deadline, JIG Technologies can help.

Compliance Penalties to Avoid

AODA website compliance is mandatory for organizations in Ontario.

In the case of AODA, organizations with 20+ employees can incur these maximum penalties:

• Any organization that is found guilty can be fined up to $100,000 per day.
• Individual directors and officers of said organizations can be fined up to $50,000 per day.

How Can JIG Help?

At JIG Technologies, we want to partner with our clients to become leaders in accessibility and help create a better Ontario.

JIG compliance services include:

• Assessment of your website for compliance.
• Website compliance plan implementation.
• Plan and timeline to address any necessary changes.