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Links The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 Frequently Asked Questions about the Accessibility For Ontarians With Disabilities Act, 2005 Business Friendly Accessibility Checklist Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration Accessibility Directorate of Ontario The Ontario Human Rights Commission Reviewing Plans of Subdivision for Accessibility Citizens Guides to Land-use Planning Architectural Products for Barrier Free Living
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Accessibility For Ontarians With Disabilities Act, 2005 - Q & A FAQ 1: About the Standards Development Committees FAQ 2: About the Final Proposed Accessible Transportation Standard FAQ 3: About the Initial Proposed Accessible Information and Communications Standard Regulation FAQ 4: About the Employment Accessibility Initial Proposed Standard FAQ 5: About the Accessible Customer Service Standard Regulation FAQ 6: About the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005
What are accessibility standards? Making Ontario accessible starts with breaking down barriers that prevent people with disabilities from doing the things many of us take for granted— things such as going shopping, taking public transit, eating out or getting a job. Standards are often a required way of doing something, as they are with Ontario’s accessibility standards, Standards help to control the quality, safety and reliability of products or services. By developing accessibility standards, we can identify, remove and prevent barriers to accessibility. Ontario’s accessibility standards will be the rules that businesses and organizations in the province will have to follow to make Ontario more accessible to people of all abilities. In what areas are accessibility standards being developed? Ontario is developing accessibility standards in five important areas:
Who is developing the accessibility standards? Standards development committees are currently developing proposed standards for consideration by the government:
Each committee is composed of:
How far along are the committees in developing the standards? The committee that developed the proposed customer service standard has completed its work. The proposed customer service standard was used by the government to create a regulation, which is now law. The regulation came into effect on January 1, 2008. Designated public sector organizations will need to comply by January 1, 2010. All other businesses and organizations covered by the standard will need to comply by January 1, 2012. Why are the standards being implemented one at a time, instead of all at once? If Ontario waits until all the standards are developed before implementing them, progress will be slowed down. This phased approach allows businesses and other organizations time to meet each standard as it comes into force, rather than having to comply with all standards at the same time. Phasing in the standards gives businesses and other organizations time to plan to make accessibility part of their regular business planning. Won’t these standards put a burden on small businesses and other organizations? The government is not taking a “one-size-fits-all” approach to developing standards. Ontario’s goal is to develop realistic and practical accessibility standards that businesses and organizations can build into their regular business and capital planning cycles. The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 gives standards development committees the flexibility to propose different requirements and compliance timelines for different types and sizes of businesses. For example, the customer service standard, which came into effect on January 1, 2008, has two compliance timelines:
The government is helping in other ways, too. As standards are developed and made into law, the Ministry of Community and Social Services plans to provide online resources and tools to help businesses and organizations comply. What kinds of compliance assistance materials will be available for businesses and organizations? The Ministry of Community and Social Services will be developing a range of materials to help businesses and organizations understand and comply with the requirements of the standards. Here are some examples:
Materials will be available online and in alternate formats. The ministry has already started to post materials to help businesses and organizations comply with the customer service standard. Find out more by visiting www.accesson.ca/compliance. How is the government working with partners to achieve accessibility? The Ministry of Community and Social Services is working with partners in key umbrella organizations. Current partners include:
The ministry and its partners are working together to:
Next: Frequently Asked Questions about the Final
Proposed Accessible Transportation Standard |
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