This policy is intended to meet the requirements of Accessibility Standards for Customer Service, Ontario Regulation 429/07 under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and applies to all of Oxfam Canada’s operations in Canada.
Scope
This policy is intended to meet the requirements of Accessibility Standards for Customer Service, Ontario Regulation 429/07 under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and applies to all of Oxfam Canada’s operations in Canada.
Purpose
The AODA was designed to make Ontario more accessible by identifying, removing and preventing barriers for persons with disabilities[1]. Through the AODA, five standards have been developed: Customer Service, Information and Communication, Employment, Transportation and Building Environment. The goal is to make Ontario barrier-free by 2025.
Policy
Oxfam Canada will make every reasonable effort to ensure that its policies, practices and procedures are consistent with the principles of dignity, independence, integration and equal opportunity by:
- Ensuring that all people receive the same value and quality of service
- Allowing people with disabilities to do things their own way, at their own pace, when accessing goods and services as long as this does not present a safety risk
- Using alternate methods when possible to ensure that people with disabilities have access to the same services, in the same place and in a similar manner
- Considering individual needs when providing goods and services
- Communicating in a manner that takes into account the person’s disability
Assistive Devices
Persons with disabilities may use their own assistive devices[2] as required when accessing goods or services[3] from Oxfam Canada.
In cases where the assistive device presents a safety concern or where accessibility might be an issue, other reasonable measures will be used to ensure access. For example, open flames and oxygen tanks cannot be near one another, therefore, the accommodation of a person with an oxygen tank may involve ensuring the person is in a safe location. Where elevators are not present and the person with a disability requires assistive devices for mobility, service can be provided in a location that meets the needs of the person.
Guide Dog
A person with a disability that is accompanied by a guide dog[4] or service animal[5] will have access to the premises of Oxfam Canada. Care and control of the guide dog is the responsibility of the person who is being accompanied.
Support Person
If a person with a disability is accompanied by a support person[6], Oxfam Canada will ensure that both persons have access to the premises together and that the person with the disability is not prevented from having access to the support person.
In situations where confidential information might be discussed in the presence of a support person, consent will be obtained from the person with the disability, prior to any conversation occurring.
Provide Feedback
Oxfam Canada will provide an opportunity for people with disabilities to provide feedback on the service they receive. Feedback may be provided verbally (in person or telephone), written, website or email. Feedback can be submitted to:
Luana Cotsman
Manager, Human Resources
Oxfam Canada
39 McArthur Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario K1L 8L7
People who provide feedback will receive acknowledgement of their feedback, along with any resulting actions based on concerns or complaints that were submitted.
Terms
- Disability, defined by the AODA and the Human Rights Code, refers to any degree of physical disability, infirmity, malformation or disfigurement that is caused by bodily injury, birth defect or illness and includes:
- Diabetes, epilepsy, a brain injury, any degree of paralysis, amputation, lack of physical coordination, blindness or visual impediment, deafness or hearing impediment, muteness or speech impediment, or physical reliance on a guide dog or other animal or on a wheelchair or other remedial appliance or device
- Intellectual or developmental disability
- A learning disability or dysfunction in one or more of the processes involved in understanding or using symbols or spoken language
- A mental disorder
- An injury or disability for which benefits were claimed or received under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997
- Assistive Device is a technical aid, communication device or other instrument used to maintain or improve the functional abilities of people with disabilities. Personal assistive devices are typically devices that people use such as wheelchair, walker or a personal oxygen tank that might assist in hearing, seeing, communicating, moving, breathing, remembering and/or reading. Jump back to assistive device reference
- Goods and Services includes communication and interactions with the public, recruitment services, brochures, pamphlets and electronic job postings and application forms. Jump back to goods and services reference
- Guide Dog is a highly trained working dog that has been trained at one of the facilities listed under the Blind Persons’ Rights Act, to provide mobility, safety and increased independence for people who are blind. Jump back to guide dog reference
- Service Animal is an animal used by a person with a disability if:
It is apparent that the animal is used by the person for reasons relating to her or his disability
Or the person provides a letter from a physician or nurse confirming that the person requires the animal for reasons relating to the disability. Jump back to service animal reference - Support Person, in relation to a person with a disability, is another person who accompanies her or him in order to help with communication, mobility, personal care, medical needs or access to goods and services. Jump back to support person reference
Documents
Oxfam Canada’s Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Policy
All of our resources, documents and publications are available upon request, including Oxfam’s emergency response information.
For more information, visit the AODA website here: Ontario.ca/AccessON