Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) & ADOA compliance

What are Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), and Why Should I Comply with AODA in Ontario?

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are requirements established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to improve web accessibility. They are designed to make strategies, standards, and supporting resources on the Internet accessible to all users.

The W3C’s first version of WCAG (WCAG 1.0) was released in 1999, and it was a monumental step forward in web accessible technology. WCAG 2.0 was released in 2008, and will be applicable for several more years. WCAG 2.0 is based on technology requirements as well as ethical principles. You can learn more about the specific requirements and principles here.

The goal for Ontario is to be fully accessible by 2025.

Creating a website that complies with WCAG’s standards ensures that your website is accessible by more people, and it specializes in addressing many of the problems that users with disabilities face as well as improving the overall user experience (UX).

What Should I do to Make my Website More Accessible?

The team at Zigma thoroughly understands the WCAG’s standards, and will support our clients to create websites that conform to the WCAG 2.0 -AODA requirements.

Within WCAG 2.0, there are three levels of compliance:

• Level A – deals with the most basic web accessibility features
• Level AA – deals with the largest and most common barriers for users with disabilities
• Level AAA – deals with the highest and most complex levels of web accessibility

Which Companies in Ontario must comply?

By law, your company must make new and significantly refreshed public websites accessible if you are:

1. A private or non-profit organization with 50+ employees; or
2. A public sector organization
3. The organization that controls the website must meet the accessibility requirements.

When is AODA Compliance deadline

Beginning January 1, 2021: all public websites and web content posted after January 1, 2012 must meet WCAG 2.0 Level AA other than criteria 1.2.4 (live captions) and 1.2.5 (pre-recorded audio descriptions)

Zigma is proud to provide websites that fully comply with the W3C’s WCAG 2.0 AODA Level AA standards.

If you are a business owner who is unsure if your website complies with the AODA’s WCAG 2.0 requirements, call Zigma’s Internet marketing team at (647) 556-6071. Alternatively, you can fill out this form, and we will call you and specifically tell you the steps you need to take for your website to comply with Ontario’s new AODA regulation.