SciLeads is committed to upholding and exceeding Ontario’s legislation intended to remove barriers to accessibility for people with disabilities. This includes providing equal access to employment, information, and services, and treating persons with disabilities with dignity and respect in a way that takes their disability into account. Applicable definitions follow at the end of the document.
TRAINING
SciLeads will provide training to all relevant employees, volunteers, and independent contractors to ensure they are familiar with our policies, practices, and procedures for communicating with and providing services to persons with disabilities.
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION
SciLeads will make our information accessible to people with disabilities by creating materials and support in accessible formats and will deliver alternate formats of information to clients, upon request. If a particular material cannot be converted into an accessible format that meets the needs of the person requesting it, we will provide details of why it cannot be converted and provide a summary of the information or communication in another way that is suitable.
EMPLOYMENT
SciLeads welcomes and encourages employment applications from people with disabilities and will do our part to make hiring and employee support practices more accessible by providing accommodation during all stages of recruitment, hiring, and employment. If a job applicant requests accommodation, SciLeads will consult with the applicant and provide suitable accommodation that takes the person’s accessibility needs into account. When making offers of employment, SciLeads will notify the successful applicant of its policies for accommodating employees with disabilities.
New employees will be reminded about our job accommodation policies as soon as possible upon being hired and notified when any future changes are made to policies. Policy information will include available employment accommodations that will be provided for job related matters such as performance management, career development, emergency response plans, and return to work information.
SciLeads will consult with an employee who requests it, to provide or arrange for the provision of accessible formats and communication supports that take the employee’s needs into account when providing information that is needed to perform the employee’s job, and information that is generally available to employees in the workplace.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
SciLeads will provide customer service in a manner that removes barriers for people with disabilities according to the following key principles of the AODA:
- Services will be provided in a manner that respects the dignity and independence of persons with disabilities.
- Service to people with disabilities will be integrated with others, unless an alternate way of providing the goods, service or facility is required by the person with the disability.
- Persons with disabilities will be given equal opportunity to use and benefit from the goods, services, or facilities an organization or business has to offer.
- We will communicate with people with disabilities in a way that takes the individual’s disability into account. Persons with disabilities who use an assistive device will be permitted to use their own device to access the goods and services of SciLeads. If there is a temporary disruption in any of our services, SciLeads will provide notice in accessible formats, where available.
FEEDBACK
SciLeads is happy to accept feedback about the way in which we provide goods and services to persons with disabilities in any way that is suitable for that person. When a complaint is received about the way we provide services to persons with disabilities, SciLeads will let the person who submitted the feedback know about the actions the organization will take to resolve the issue. SciLeads can accept feedback by emailing [email protected].
DEFINITIONS
Definitions taken from the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, S.O. 2005, C. 11 or Ontario Human Rights Code.
“Accessible formats” may include, but are not limited to, large print, recorded audio and electronic formats, braille, and other formats usable by persons with disabilities.
“Barrier” means anything that prevents a person with a disability from fully participating in all aspects of society because of their disability, including a physical barrier, an architectural barrier, an information or communications barrier, an attitudinal barrier, a technological barrier, a policy, or a practice; (“obstacle”).
“Disability” is defined broadly by the Ontario Human Rights Code as:
- any degree of physical disability, infirmity, malformation or disfigurement that is caused by bodily injury, birth defect or illness and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, includes diabetes mellitus, 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,
- a condition of mental impairment or a developmental disability,
- a learning disability, or a dysfunction in one or more of the processes involved in understanding or using symbols or spoken language,
- a mental disorder, or
- an injury or disability for which benefits were claimed or received under the insurance plan established under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.”