Ten Years of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act

On June 3, 2015—the 10th anniversary of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA)—Ontario’s government introduced an accessibility action plan, which establishes measures to meet the goal of an “accessible Ontario” by 2025. The action plan also responds to the Report on the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act review released in February 2015.

The action plan, Path to 2025: Ontario’s Accessibility Action Plan, focuses on three key priorities.

1. Initiatives to encourage businesses to hire persons with disabilities:

• Community Loans—a $4 million program to provide low-interest commercial loans to businesses that show a commitment to hiring persons with disabilities.
• Partnership for Accessible Employment—a $5 million program that helps small and medium-sized businesses hire and employ persons with disabilities.
• Abilities Connect—a $1.8 million partnership with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce to help employers build more inclusive workplaces and create a network of businesses that promote best practices.

2. Reviewing, streamlining and expanding accessibility laws and standards:

• Addressing barriers to accessibility identified through the government-wide review.
• Working with stakeholders on the steps the government could take regarding the timing of ongoing reviews of the act and accessibility standards. This would allow for collaboration with key stakeholders and the collection of critical implementation and compliance data to inform future reviews.
• Introducing legislation addressing barriers to accessibility identified through a government-wide review of high-impact legislation, ensuring that government documents and appeals processes are accessible for people with disabilities.
• Amending the Customer Service Standard to clarify and streamline requirements based on advice from the Minister’s Standards Development Committee.
• Reviewing the Transportation Standard beginning in the fall of 2015 to ensure requirements are working as intended and enabling Ontarians to travel easily to where they need to go—including to their workplaces.

3. Promoting awareness of and enforcing accessibility standards:

• Consulting with industry disability advocates, certification experts, municipalities and not-for-profits to develop a voluntary, third-party certification program, similar to the “LEED” designation in green buildings.
• Collaborating with professional audit services to enhance compliance and audit activities.
• Exploring opportunities through social media or online platforms to expand and strengthen the conversation on accessibility between businesses and persons with disabilities.
• Creating more public awareness campaigns focusing on raising awareness of the AODA and the Employment Standard.
• Releasing an annual compliance and enforcement plan—which will include audit blitzes—and report back to inform the public of efforts being made, and monitor compliance trends among obligated organizations. These annual updates will outline the previous year’s results and publicize targets and the plan for the following year.

Do you know how far toward compliance your company is?

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