Required training under the AODA customer service standard

As the compliance date for the Accessibility Standards for Customer Service under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) comes closer companies have to consider that several requirements have to be in place January 1, 2012. These include:

• Establishing policies and procedures relating to the provision of goods and services to persons with disabilities, including persons using service animals or accompanied by a support person
• Developing alternative modes of communication with persons with disabilities
• Developing a process to notify customers of a disruption in service
• Providing training to all staff who participate in the development of customer service policies and procedures or deal with members of the public pertaining to the AODA and its requirements, including how to use assistive devices on the premises, what to do if a person with a disability is having difficulty accessing goods or services and how to interact with persons with disabilities who use assistive devices, support persons and service animals
• Developing a process for receiving and responding to feedback about the manner in which the organization provides goods and services to persons with disabilities
• Where the employer or organization has more than 20 employees, documenting actions related to the standards and filing an accessibility report with the Government of Ontario

Failure to meet these requirements by January 1, 2012, may result in significant monetary penalties.

What we gathered at our most recent AODA seminar is that employers are very concerned about the training aspect of the customer service obligations.

Customer service training must include:

• The purpose of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act and Regulations
• The purpose and requirements of the Accessibility Standards for Customer Service
• How to interact and communicate with people with various types of disabilities
• How to interact with people with disabilities who use an assistive device or require the assistance of a service animal or support person
• How to use the assistive devices available or made available at your organization for use by people with disabilities
• What to do if a person with a disability is having difficulty accessing your organization’s goods and services, including asking the person how he or she can be accommodated and what alternative methods of service provision would be more accessible
• Your organization’s policies, practices and procedures relating to the provision and access of goods and services to the public and other third parties

Training must be provided to all current and new staff that deal with members of the public or other third parties, whether the person is an employee, agent, volunteer or otherwise. Organizations should further ensure that every person who participates in developing the organization’s policies, practices and procedures governing the provision of goods or services to members of the public or other third parties receives training.

Training must be ongoing, for example, when there are changes to your policies, practices and procedures dealing with the provision and access of goods and services, including changes to the law.

Every designated public sector organization and every other provider of goods or services that has at least 20 employees in Ontario shall keep records of the training provided, including the dates on which the training is provided and the number of individuals to whom it is provided.

We recommend that all organizations (no matter the size) keep records of training that include the training occurrence dates for each staff member and the number of people receiving training. Organizations are responsible to ensure all new staff members are trained and to monitor compliance with training requirements under the AODA.

Please share some ways you are training for the Customer Service Standard.

If you are interested in learning more about Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) or how to make accessibility a natural part of your business through the application of Corporate Social Responsibility, please contact Sandra Broekhof @ 416-579-1035 or sandra_broekhof@sympatico.ca or visit www.accessibilitycompliance.ca