Friday, July 12, 2013

Learn the latest! — What you need to know about the new Workplace Mental Health Standard

The Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace – Prevention, promotion and guidance to staged implementation (the “Standard”) was released by the Mental Health Commission of Canada, the Bureau de Normalization du Québec and the Canadian Standards Association (“CSA”) on January 16, 2013.

Overview

The Standard provides employers with a framework to develop and sustain a psychologically healthy and safe workplace, through the identification and elimination of hazards in the workplace, the assessment and control of the risks in the workplace, the implementation of structures and practices to facilitate psychological health, and the fostering of a workplace culture that promotes psychological well-being.

Highlights of the Standard include:

· Implementing a Psychological Health and Safety Management System (PHSMS)

· Developing risk mitigation process

· Competence and training

· Protecting confidentiality and privacy rights

· Accountabilities for implementation

· Reporting and investigations process

· Monitoring and measurement

The Standard calls for a “psychological health and safety management system”, but provides few specifics. This is probably because accommodation of mental health disabilities is such an inherently fact specific undertaking that establishing “measurable objectives” will not assist in assessing a particular case.

The Standard next recommends that employers implement preventive and protective measures to address any identified hazards or risks. This should include providing resources to employees who have been suffering from mental health difficulties.

In light of this new Standard, employers should consider taking the following action:

· Review policies and programs and consider how mental health issues may be addressed

· Consider how past incidents and particular employees were dealt with and if your organization could have done better

· Assess the workplace for any mental health hazards (high stress, exposure to risks, high workload) and take appropriate action to mitigate these hazards

Mental Health is considered a disability. What are some things your company/organization has done to comply with this new 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

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Accessible electronic information: small steps with a big outcome

In the steps to make Accessibility a natural part of your business, all you need to think about is small steps. Remember the age old saying --- it is the small things that count. In the field of electronic communication, consider these screen reader tips:

Email: When sending emails, use the BCC (blind carbon copy) section of your address to send bulk emails. Use just one name in the main address section. Otherwise, recipients who use a screen reader have to listen to all the names and addresses of everyone who is receiving your email.
Pictures: The cliché that pictures replace a thousand words is not useful for a person who is blind or has low vision or vision loss. Use open captioning features and describe what you are trying to say in the picture.
Plain language: If you are talking to a wide audience it is always to your benefit to use plain language rather than specialized or technical language or jargon.
Fonts: Use simple fonts like Arial and Verdana at a minimum of 12 points. Artistic fonts and italics can be difficult to read for people with a variety of disabilities.
Colour contrast: Electronic documents should offer strong colour contrast and avoid using watermarks in the background. Always avoid glare. These steps can help any audience, which can otherwise be aggravated by unclear text on a colourful background.
Creating PDF documents: Adobe has provided accessibility features since Version 7, and improved them with Version 9. Spread the word that programmers should pay attention to the accessibility features, learn them and use them regularly.
Websites: An international organization called the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) provides protocols and guidelines to ensure that web-based information is accessible to everyone. Make sure your programmers know how to build and maintain an accessible website. Make sure all of the people involved are aware of their obligations to offer accessible information.
A best practice approach is to prioritize existing web content to become accessible based on:

Usability factors, for example, questionnaires, feedback or applications
Information that is frequently visited, legal or vital

Encryption codes: Such codes are not accessible to people who are blind or have low vision or vision loss. Often the codes are so complicated that sighted users also have problems with accessibility. Offer an accessible non-biometric alternative method to verify you are dealing with an adult.
Accessible website portal: Use the upper left hand corner of your website to direct a screen reader to read aloud that there is an accessible section of your website. By placing the prompt in the upper left hand corner the screen reader will speak these words first to the end-user. Make this a temporary solution while you are preparing to provide a fully accessible website.
Free screen readers: There are free screen readers available. You can download one and learn how to use it. When providing accessible information, use the screen reader to identify problem areas.

What are some things your company/organization has done to make accessibility a natural part of your daily life>?

AODA compliance: the good, the bad and the ugly

Today’s post is all about hearing from you! Questions arise as to how organizations are dealing with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) compliance requirements in Ontario. Let us know where you stand on compliance and what hurdles you encountered or are still encountering. If it is a lack of funds, then which creative ideas have you chosen as alternatives? If the issue is not funding, but all the barriers you’ve identified that need a remedy, then share those thoughts too. If you have a good secret, let it out. The broader the discussion, the better the solutions we’ll come up with. The Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services also wants to hear from you, and may showcase your organization in a YouTube video.

Lately, people have asked, how is everyone else doing with the AODA? I hear so many different stories. Each organization and each large and small sized company has a different plan and different expectations.

In training staff, volunteers and decision-makers about the AODA, do you feel the organization is going through the motions of compliance, or do you see value in the training? Perhaps training began as something you just had to do, and attitudes changed when staff and volunteers understood the lessons. A good number of responses will give us a pulse on whether organizations are seeing a positive or negative change in attitude toward people with disabilities.

You can respond by leaving a comment below. I believe we can all learn something new from each other every day. Tell us about the good, the bad and the ugly you’ve encountered when meeting compliance with the AODA. We are all moving in this direction together.

Can you share some of your compliance stories?

Why website accessibility matters

On May 30, 2012, the Federal Court of Appeal upheld a legally blind woman’s 2010 legal victory over the federal government, ordering the government to make its websites accessible to blind persons. It may not be a case under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), but it does show us how website accessibility matters and has an impact on promoting accessibility for persons with disabilities.

The Federal Court of Appeal ruling reaffirmed that the inaccessible federal government websites violated Donna Jodhan’s constitutional equality rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. More specifically, with its inaccessible websites, the federal government denied Jodhan equal access to, and benefit from, government information and services provided online to the public on the Internet, and this constituted discrimination against her on the basis of her blindness. Therefore, she has not received the equal benefit of the law without discrimination based on her physical disability and that constitutes a violation of subsection 15(1) of the Charter.

During the appeal, the government argued that:

…effective access to government information and services is attained when the information is accessed by a person irrespective of the means used to obtain the information.… In other words, if one person can access information online within a matter of minutes and another person can access the same information by traveling to a government office, waiting for his or her turn and then meeting with a government employee to obtain the same information, there has been effective access in both cases and thus both persons have received the same benefit of the law.

The government was saying it does not matter how or how long it takes to get the information, as long as a person gets the information in the end.

The Federal Court of Appeal could not agree with the government’s argument. In its view:

…one of the above two persons has not received the same benefit. They have not been treated equally.… I am therefore of the view that the benefit of the law is access to government information and services. However, access thereto necessarily includes the benefit of online access, which is not just an ancillary component of the multi-channel delivery mechanism, but an integral part thereof. In other words, one cannot speak of access to government information and services without including access thereto by way of the Internet.

Although the Appeal Court upheld the ruling of discrimination, it struck down the lower court’s ongoing supervisory role to ensure the government was complying with the decision.

A spokesperson for Treasury Board Minister Tony Clement said the government is reviewing the decision and added, “Our government is continuing to implement the Federal Court decision from 2010, … We are committed to web accessibility and to date over 100 government institutions are converting their content in line with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.”

Will the government take this case to the Supreme Court of Canada?

Everyone in the business of making the world accessible understands the voluminous work the federal government was expected to complete in 15 months. Finding web developers with knowledge in web accessibility was the first challenge. Undertaking the volume of work to convert the government’s multitude of websites was next. By taking this case back to court, the government won extra time before being ordered again to meet compliance.

Despite buying time to extend its deadline, it would behoove the government to continue using taxpayers’ money to meet compliance as soon as possible. In the meanwhile, all government agencies and representatives have been scrambling to find accessibility specialists, with the understanding that this ruling will stand the test of time and a Supreme Court decision is not likely to be different.

What does this ruling mean for promoting web accessibility?

This case has major implications, highlighting the importance of access to the Internet for all persons with disabilities. It also indicates that information provided in alternative formats is not necessarily sufficient, particularly if a user can’t access it in a similar time frame. If Canadians who are blind or have low vision (regardless of their ability to use a screen reader) are not offered accessible Internet content like those without a disability, they are at a disadvantage.

Chances are disability advocates and people with disabilities will continue to demand accessible information. For organizations that do not comply, expect a challenge.
In Ontario, the Information and Communication Standard under the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation states that websites and content will conform to the World Wide Web Consortium Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 at Level A and AA, with the exclusion of live captions and descriptive audio interpretation.
Courts may consider this decision a precedent beyond the federal government. Organizations in Ontario (under the AODA)—and across the country—should think about these factors:

Alternative formats to provide important information, with or without aid from a representative, cannot match equal rights to receive information as quickly and privately as another person when the information is readily available to the public
The standards are not finished, and they clearly will not make Ontario accessible by the year 2025 if new standards are not developed and released soon
People with disabilities do not have to wait for the AODA and standards to make equality rights a reality; that is, they may already challenge an organization or individual that they believe has discriminated against them
This case affects how information and communications on the Internet are delivered nationally, and is not limited to the province of Ontario

Your organization should:

Train staff to produce accessible information and communications now.
Beat the goal in the Integrated Accessibility Regulation and use 15 months as the time to deliver accessible Internet content.
Grab the accessibility Internet consultants that are available because supply is not as high as demand. If you wait, you may pay more to educate staff and to make your Internet communications accessible. The earlier everyone involved produces accessible information and communications, there will be less to fix later. It costs less to do something right the first time than to fix a problem.
Take note, in the Integrated Accessibility Regulation, only the government is obliged to make intranet sites accessible. If your intranet sites are not accessible you may:

See a standard released in the next few years to correct this issue
Be taken to court because a person who is blind or has low vision or low mobility is not provided equal opportunity for employment and advancement at the workplace

Focus on any information vital for the well-being of persons with a disability, or for providing equal opportunity. An example is your organization’s capacity to advertise work positions and receive responses in an accessible manner. If you use an advertising agency to promote your open job positions, ensure they are taking the steps now to become accessible.
Focus on alternative formats that protect privacy and allow users to access information in a timely manner. In the present case, Jodhan required outside assistance to obtain information verbally or on paper. Braille is considered as the appropriate alternative format if she received information on paper. However, Braille is not the only format because there are many people who are Blind or have low vision who do not know how to read Braille. Ask the customer for the preferred method to communicate, do your best to comply and avoid a reliance on staff to relay information verbally. Remember, if you provide information and methods to interact with your organization via the Internet, no alternative format can compete with these online services.

If your IT departments or personnel are not taking the AODA seriously, consider sensitivity-awareness training. Also, consider letting staff know this is the future of IT and if staff wants to remain relevant they will have to learn to develop accessible content with style. Just because you provide accessible content, it does not mean your website will be boring. Staying within the guidelines will reap rewards of reaching a wider audience, and accessible Internet communications can be just as elegant as your desired image.

Finally, if IT accessibility consultants become too expensive to contract, maybe we will have to campaign together for accessible prices!

What do you think an accessible menu should will look like? Will it be helpful?

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Meeting the customer service standard: restaurant menus

All businesses with at least one employee will have to comply with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) Customer Service Standard taking effect January 1, 2012.

Restaurants need to have a policy on allowing people to use their own assistive devices to access your goods and services, and that includes your menu or menu board hung high on the wall. Some restaurants might have Braille and large print menus, but what if your potential customer can’t read either?
A MENU also has a number of different options:

Regular and large print, black text on a white background
Regular and large print (high contrast), white text on a black background
Off-white for those with Dyslexia
Mobile versions of regular and high contrast

All of a sudden, your menu has become accessible to a larger market of clients.

Think about the new Integrated Accessibility Standard; the Communication Strand. The new standard isn’t designed to turn business upside down, just do things differently to accommodate, in the end we all benefit

What do you think an accessible menu should will look like? Will it be helpful?

Common Myths and Realities about People with Disabilities

The Integrated Accessibility Standard sets out requirements for each of the three standards (i.e., Information and Communication, Employment and Transportation), as well as general requirements that apply to all public, private, large, small and medium businesses in Ontario.

In order to plan for compliance it is important to explore some of the common myths and realities about people with disabilities.

Myth	Reality
People with disabilities are inferior and their lives are very different.	People with disabilities go to school, get married, work, have families, play, do laundry, go shopping, eat out, travel, volunteer, vote, pay taxes, laugh, cry, plan and dream — just like everyone else.
We need to feel sorry for people with disabilities.	That's patronizing. People with disabilities don't need pity. They need access to opportunities.
People with disabilities are brave and courageous.	Adjusting to a disability requires adapting to a lifestyle, not bravery and courage.
It's not a good idea to hire people with disabilities. They have a higher turnover rate and they take sick days more often.	Many studies show that employees with disabilities are often more productive, dependable and loyal than their co-workers without disabilities and that staff retention.
You have to be careful when you're talking to a person with a disability, because they are easily offended if you use the wrong word.	You just need to be as polite and respectful as you would when speaking to anyone. If you're not sure what to say or do, it's okay to ask.
It's difficult serving customers with disabilities.	Customers with disabilities have the same preferences, perceptions, attitudes, habits, and needs as customers without disabilities, and they are looking for the same quality of products and services. Everyone, regardless of ability, deserves to be treated with the same dignity and respect.

Dates to Consider

The requirements will be phased in over time between 2011 and 2015. This will give organizations the time they need to make accessibility a natural part of their business processes.

Do you have any myths or realities about people with disability?