AODA: Common misconceptions about proposed accessible built environment standard

There are some common misconceptions about the final proposed built environment standard under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). This post is dedicated to clarifying a few of these misunderstandings.

Misconception number 1: The final proposed accessible built environment standard is a regulation.

Answer: No, the final proposed accessible built environment standard is not yet a regulation.

Misconception number 2: The proposed standard includes the topic of retrofits.

Answer: No, the final proposed standard does not include the topic of retrofits.

Why the misconception? The word retrofitting is used to mean that existing buildings or structures will be legally forced to become accessible by a specific date. After public review, the provincial government decided the accessible built environment standard at this time would only affect the 

building of new structures and major renovations to existing buildings.

Misconception number 3: The proposed standard takes effect as of the year 2014.

Answer: No, a date cannot be presumed until the proposed standard becomes a regulation. The date this standard will take effect remains unclear. People can speculate on when they believe the accessible built environment standard will become a regulation but they are merely guesstimates.

So, as we learn about the proposed accessible built environment standard created under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, it is vital to know when we or our experts are guessing as opposed to what information is confirmed. Until a proposed standard becomes a regulation, what we read is written by esteemed standards committees who provided their expertise. I have read many versions of draft proposed standards.

What are some of your mis-conceptions about the built environment 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 

AODA: Inappropriate words can bite – the customer service standard

The Accessibility Standard for Customer Service Regulation obligates Ontario businesses and their employees to communicate with persons with disabilities in a manner that takes into account the person’s disability. Employers must train employees to interact and communicate with people that have various types of disabilities. Training should also cover appropriate terminology.

People with disabilities are not alone in wanting terminology to convey their positive abilities as human beings, rather than the negative language of their conditions. How we use our words to perpetuate negative stereotypes is important, and how we refer to another person is vital. But how can we recognize simple terms that, when combined with other words, may convey the wrong message? What do we do when words like “normal” or “average” are common terms in science, statistics, government policy, education and medicine, and have become socially functional words that may simultaneously be insulting?

It is interesting to see that words like “crippled” and “lame” have been readily accepted as negative terms. Yet because all of us are used to being graded in relation to the average from infancy, we have difficulty letting go of some words to refer to a person with a particular disability. When describing a person with a specific disability, the words “disorder”, “disease”, “below average” and “dysfunction” flow off the tongue and pages. Audiences absorb the negative associations from repeated use of these words in reference to people with disabilities.

Today, our understanding and social treatment of people with disabilities attempts to focus on a person’s “differing abilities” rather than his or her disabilities. While many advocacy groups have accepted “disability” as a necessary label, they want to focus on the “ability” portion of the word. For example, now it is common to write “disAbility” to remind a reader persons with disabilities still have abilities.

The terminology associated with disability is fluid and a word that may have been accepted last year may have changed this year; thus making the learning curve a little difficult. Finding the right words can be a daunting experience, but if you aim to stay within the lexicon of positive social words, you are going in the right direction.

This strategy also works when it comes to training. Unless specific employees need to know medical terms, there is no reason to provide medical reasons for the variety of disabilities they may encounter. For example, at no time does a server have a right to ask about the nature of a customer’s disability. Training should be based on alternative methods to communicate and interact when the customer is not responsive to a specific method. Under the customer service standard, every organization commits itself (explicitly in a mission or policy statement) to the core principles of dignity, independence, integration and equality.

How can you change the words you use to show respect for people with disabilities?

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 

What kind of feedback process is required?

The Customer Service Standard of the AODA states that there needs to be a copy of your policy readily available to the public.   The customer service standard requires that providers set up a feedback process so that anyone can comment on the provision of goods or services to people with disabilities. Information on the process must be readily available to the public.

The feedback process must permit persons to provide their feedback in a format that takes into account the customer’s disability.  The feedback process must specify the actions that the provider of goods or services is required to take if a complaint is received.

The process that is set up must indicate what actions you will take after you have received a complaint. You may determine your own process for responding to complaints as the customer service standard does not require you to follow any particular process.

However, the customer service standard specifically requires that the process allow feedback to be provided in at least one of the following ways: in person (orally), by telephone, in writing, electronically by diskette or e-mail, or otherwise. While the standard doesn’t specify the format of the feedback process, you should bear in mind that subsection 3(4) of the standard requires that when you communicate with a person with a disability that you take into account the person’s disability. In your planning you may want to consider that people with various disabilities may need to use your feedback mechanism.

What does your feedback mechanism look like? 

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 

Service animals and people with disabilities – AODA best practices

In Ontario there is a regulation called the Accessibility Standard for Customer Service. One of the requirements of this regulation is that persons with disabilities are allowed to enter your organization’s public premises with a service animal. A person should be able to remain with the animal unless otherwise excluded by law. If the animal is excluded by law, you must have another measure available to enable the person to obtain, use or benefit from your organization’s goods or services. Note, a service animal is not a pet; he or she is a working animal and must not be excluded under your no-pets policy.

Service animals are used by people with many different kinds of disabilities. . These animals provide services to individuals helping them function with greater self-sufficiency; prevent injuries; and summon help in a crisis.  Examples of service animals include dogs used by people who are Blind, hearing alert animals for people who are Deaf, deafened or hard of hearing, and animals trained to alert an individual to an oncoming seizure and lead them to safety.

If there are any areas of your premises that are open to the public where animals are excluded by law they should be identified. You will need a solution so you have other measures to provide service to the person with a disability. You can decide to have your transactions take place in a separate area. You may provide a secure area to leave the animal, if the customer is comfortable doing so. In the latter case, you will have to provide support for the person who requires assistance.

Other situations may arise where there are health and safety reasons of another person by the presence of a service animal on premises open to the public, such as people with allergies to animals. Some of the options to consider may be creating distance between two individuals, eliminating in-person contact, changing the time the two receive service, and any other measures that would allow the person to use their service animal on the premises. The organization must consider all relevant factors and options in trying to find a solution that meets the needs of both individuals.

How are customers with Service animals treated in your organization?

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 

AODA: The Employment Standard

Last week I began to talk about some of the components of the Integrated Accessibility Standard.  The Employment Standard requires an organization to be proactive in the identification, removal and prevention of barriers hindering the full participation in employment of persons with disabilities. It also requires that organizations have policies and procedures for establishing individual accommodation plans where barriers cannot be removed proactively, shifting the onus from the individual who needs the accommodation to the person who provides it.

Accessible formats and communication supports for employees

In addition to the above obligations, where an employee with a disability so requests it, every employer must consult with the employee to provide or arrange for the provision of accessible formats and communication supports for:

a) Information that is needed in order to perform the employee’s job; and
b) Information that is generally available to employees in the workplace.
The consultation determines the suitability of an accessible format or communication support, but the final determination as to which accessible format or communication support will be used rests with the employer.

Documented individual accommodation plans

Employers, except employers of small organizations, must develop and have in place a written process for the development of documented individual accommodation plans for employees with disabilities.
The process for the plans includes the following elements:

• The manner in which an employee requesting accommodation can participate in the development of the individual accommodation plan
• The means by which the employee is assessed on an individual basis
• The manner in which the employer can request an evaluation by an outside medical or other expert, at the employer’s expense, to determine if and how accommodation can be achieved
• The manner in which the employee can request the participation of a representative from their bargaining agent, where the employee is represented by a bargaining agent, or other representative from the workplace, where the employee is not represented by a bargaining agent, in the development of the accommodation plan
• The steps taken to protect the privacy of the employee’s personal information
• The frequency with which the individual accommodation plan will be reviewed and updated and the manner in which it will be done
• If an individual accommodation plan is denied, the manner in which the reasons for the denial will be provided to the employee
• The means of providing the individual accommodation plan in a format that takes into account the employee’s accessibility needs due to disability
• Individual accommodation plans must:
• If requested, include any information regarding accessible formats and communications supports provided
• If required, include individualized workplace emergency response information, and
• Identify any other accommodation that is to be provided

Obligated organizations will be required to provide employees with a copy of their individual accommodation plan.

How is your organization being proactive with the Employment Standard of the Integrated Accessibility 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 

AODA: The Employment Standard

Last week I began to talk about some of the components of the Integrated Accessibility Standard.  The Employment Standard requires an organization to be proactive in the identification, removal and prevention of barriers hindering the full participation in employment of persons with disabilities. It also requires that organizations have policies and procedures for establishing individual accommodation plans where barriers cannot be removed proactively, shifting the onus from the individual who needs the accommodation to the person who provides it.
Return-to-work process
Every employer, other than an employer that is a small organization, must develop and have in place a return-to-work process for its employees who have been absent from work due to a disability and require disability-related accommodations in order to return to work. They must also document the available process.
The return-to-work process must outline the steps the employer will take to facilitate the return to work of employees who were absent because their disability required them to be away from work; and use individual documented accommodation plans as part of the process.
What does this mean in practical terms? You may have to change the work that employees do or how they do it. Anyone may acquire a disability during their lifetime, or a disability may become more limiting. Ensuring a successful return to work after an employee has been on short-term or long-term disability leave requires some planning. Employers should prepare and ensure that appropriate accommodations are in place and manage the return-to-work process. Some suggestions include:

• Evaluating employee’s functional abilities
• Performing physical demands analysis of existing or potential job
• Identifying specific job modifications, including assistive devices and ergonomic equipment
• Preparing a return-to-work plan, e.g., gradual return, supported return, part/full time, training, etc.
• Providing support and direction in the return-to-work process

Everyone in the workplace needs to understand that the return of a worker with an acquired disability might require what is perceived as “special treatment”. However, under this requirement, all must understand that, that “special treatment” will be given to everyone in the same way when applicable.
Performance management
An employer that uses performance management in respect of its employees must take into account the accessibility needs of employees with disabilities, as well as individual accommodation plans, when using its performance management process in respect of employees with disabilities.
For the purpose of this standard, “performance management” means activities related to assessing and improving employee performance, productivity and effectiveness, with the goal of facilitating employee success.
What does this mean in practical terms? Organizations that use performance management processes (aimed at helping employees to be successful in their jobs) must make sure that they can be, and are, used in a way that is consistent with employees’ individual accommodation needs or plans. Employers should retain and promote staff using the same criteria for all employees. Think of identifying training needs when you regularly assess the work performance of all employees. Focus on achievements and how well someone does their job when you are assessing performance.
Career development and advancement
An employer that provides career development and advancement to its employees must take into account the accessibility needs of its employees with disabilities as well as any individual accommodation plans, when providing career development and advancement to its employees with disabilities.
For the purpose of this standard, “career development and advancement” includes providing additional responsibilities within an employee’s current position and the movement of an employee from one job to another in an organization that may be higher in pay, provide greater responsibility or be at a higher level in the organization, or any combination and which, for both additional responsibilities and employee movement, is usually based on merit or seniority, or a combination of them.
What does this mean in practical terms? Organizations that provide their employees with career development and advancement information must make sure that their employees with disabilities receive the information in a way that is consistent with their individual accommodation needs or plans.
Redeployment
An employer that uses redeployment must take into account the accessibility needs of its employees with disabilities, as well as individual accommodation plans, when redeploying employees with disabilities.
For the purpose of this standard, “redeployment” means the reassignment of employees to other departments or jobs within the organization as an alternative to termination or temporary layoff, when the organization eliminates a job or department.
What does this mean in practical terms? Where organizations have a procedure for moving an employee to another job where the existing position is ended (redeployment), the procedure must:

• Apply to employees with disabilities
• Take individual accommodation needs or plans into account
• Include consultation with the employee and/or the employee’s representative, upon request

Accessible formats and communication supports for employees
In addition to the above obligations, where an employee with a disability so requests it, every employer must consult with the employee to provide or arrange for the provision of accessible formats and communication supports for:
a) Information that is needed in order to perform the employee’s job; and
b) Information that is generally available to employees in the workplace.
The consultation determines the suitability of an accessible format or communication support, but the final determination as to which accessible format or communication support will be used rests with the employer.
Documented individual accommodation plans
Employers, except employers of small organizations, must develop and have in place a written process for the development of documented individual accommodation plans for employees with disabilities.
The process for the plans includes the following elements:

• The manner in which an employee requesting accommodation can participate in the development of the individual accommodation plan
• The means by which the employee is assessed on an individual basis
• The manner in which the employer can request an evaluation by an outside medical or other expert, at the employer’s expense, to determine if and how accommodation can be achieved
• The manner in which the employee can request the participation of a representative from their bargaining agent, where the employee is represented by a bargaining agent, or other representative from the workplace, where the employee is not represented by a bargaining agent, in the development of the accommodation plan
• The steps taken to protect the privacy of the employee’s personal information
• The frequency with which the individual accommodation plan will be reviewed and updated and the manner in which it will be done
• If an individual accommodation plan is denied, the manner in which the reasons for the denial will be provided to the employee
• The means of providing the individual accommodation plan in a format that takes into account the employee’s accessibility needs due to disability
• Individual accommodation plans must:
• If requested, include any information regarding accessible formats and communications supports provided
• If required, include individualized workplace emergency response information, and
• Identify any other accommodation that is to be provided

Obligated organizations will be required to provide employees with a copy of their individual accommodation plan.

How is your organization being proactive with the Employment Standard of the Integrated Accessibility 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