Compliance (cont'd)

Appeals

The outcome being sought by our Appeals business line is that Canadians receive an impartial and timely review of contested decisions through our redress system.

The CCRA's redress and dispute resolution service is one of the largest in the federal government. It is imperative that the system not only be fair, but that it be perceived as fair to earn and sustain clients' trust and confidence, and in turn, promote voluntary compliance. This requires that clients are informed of their rights and how to exercise them, and that the system functions in an impartial and timely manner.

As we stated in our Annual Report, while our dispute resolution process is transparent, accessible, fair and consistent, it is not always timely. Improving the timeliness of our appeals process is a key priority for enhancing the service we provide to Canadians. Regional offices are taking immediate action at the local level to improve timeliness, while a project team has been established to examine the underlying causes of the size and age of inventories. It will make recommendations by the last quarter of 2001-2002, forming the basis of a timeliness framework to be implemented next year. We anticipate that it will include establishing targets for processing disputes, a quality-monitoring program, and a competency profile for all staff.

Improving the timeliness of our appeals process is a key priority for enhancing the service we provide to Canadians.

Our 7-Point Plan for Fairness launched in 1999 has now reached a level of maturity where it is entrenched in the way we do business on a daily basis. While co-ordination of this initiative rests with Appeals, the responsibility is shared across all business lines to ensure that fairness remains an integral part of our organizational culture.

Over the planning period, we will also develop a service standard review cycle to systematically identify opportunities for improvements. This will involve a client satisfaction survey in 2002-2003 using the results of a survey we conducted in 1998 as a baseline. The new survey will enable us to assess the progress we have achieved in improving client satisfaction, which we anticipate in the range of 10%, as well as to identify further opportunities for client-driven program improvements in areas such as timeliness, transparency, and cost.

Exhibit H focusses on the key elements of the redress system required to ensure that Canadians receive an impartial and timely review of CCRA decisions. As in our other business lines, the work to better define our success criteria is an ongoing priority.

Expected outcome - Canadians receive an impartial and timely review of contested decisions through our redress system

Date modified:

2002-03-21