Accessibility Plan

United Way East Ontario is committed to ensuring equal access and participation for people with disabilities. We are committed to treating people with disabilities in a way that allows them to maintain their dignity and independence. We believe in integration and we are committed to meeting the needs of people with disabilities in a timely manner. We will do so by removing and preventing barriers to accessibility and meeting our accessibility requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act and Ontario’s accessibility laws.  

United Way East Ontario is committed to meeting its current and ongoing obligations under the Ontario Human Rights Code respecting non-discrimination. 

United Way East Ontario understands that obligations under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) and its accessibility standards do not substitute or limit its obligations under the Ontario Human Rights Code or obligations to people with disabilities under any other law. 

United Way East Ontario strives to meet the needs of its employees and customers with disabilities and is working hard to remove and prevent barriers to accessibility.

United Way East Ontario is committed to fulfilling our requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. This accessibility plan outlines the steps we are taking to meet those requirements and to improve opportunities for people with disabilities.

Our plan shows how we will play our role in making Ontario an accessible province for all Ontarians.

The plan is reviewed and updated at least once every 5 years.

To learn about our website accessibility, please visit  https://www.unitedwayeo.ca/accessibility/

To learn more about our Commitment to Accessible Client Service, please visit https://www.unitedwayeo.ca/commitment-to-accessible-client-service/

All employees receive mandatory accessibility training upon hire. It covers topics such as disability awareness, accommodation procedures, accessible communication, and the duty to accommodate.

Roles and Responsibilities:

Senior Management: Provide leadership and support for accessibility initiatives, allocate resources, and ensure compliance with the AODA employment standard.

Human Resources: Develop and implement accessibility policies and procedures, provide training and support to employees, and oversee accommodation processes.

Supervisors: Support employees with disabilities, implement accommodations as needed, and promote accessibility in day-to-day operations.

Employees: Participate in accessibility training, communicate accommodation needs, and contribute to creating an inclusive work environment.

Achievements to Remove and Prevent Barriers

• At United Way East Ontario, we actively notify existing and potential employees of the access to reasonable accommodation through every stage of employment, from recruitment to retirement. We work to proactively attract diverse talent, inclusive of job seekers with disabilities, by having access to accessible formats for job postings, as well as attending career fairs and posting jobs in places that are accessible and targeted to job seekers with disabilities.
• Accommodations can be requested at any stage of employment. Potential as well as current employees are proactively informed of the process. Accommodation requests are assessed on an individual basis, and reasonable accommodations will be provided in a timely manner. Confidentiality will be maintained throughout the process.
• Employment policies are reviewed regularly, and updated as appropriate to reflect leading practices, including inclusive design and language. The latest review was completed in 2023.
• Through the EARN (Employment Accessibility Resource Network), of which we both support and are an active member of, we work with over 100 stakeholders across our communities to better inform our own practices as well as support the improvement of employment outcomes for people with disabilities across East Ontario.
• In 2016, we also played an active role in educating small and medium sized employers on the employment standard of the AODA. This work allowed us to build our own set of resources and better understand leading practices, including ensuring that we actively seek input from people with disabilities in our work, even when we may need to engage external stakeholders to ensure representation.
• As we continued to evolve through the changes required during the COVID 19 pandemic, this allowed us to increase our flexibility in regard to the support of hybrid work opportunities which we continue to maintain. United Way East Ontario has also kept accessibility as a key consideration as we make choices about tools and resources that support our work such as online meeting platforms and office suite of products.
• United Way East Ontario continues to evolve our procurement practices to ensure that they are aligned with community wealth building principles, which includes making choices in consideration of supporting underrepresented groups in our community, like people with disabilities. An example of this includes using catering services from organizations that hire people with disabilities and ensure that they are paid at least minimum wage and/or a living wage for their work.

Strategies and Actions

United Way East Ontario is committed to maintaining a culture of continuous improvement in accessibility. Feedback from employees with disabilities, regular reviews of policies and procedures, and adjustments based on leading practices will continue to guide our efforts.

In addition to the work noted above, our goals related to accessibility and improving our alignment to the AODA standards include:

• A review of the AODA training delivered to staff. This will include the training used to ensure that it is up to date, improving our tracking mechanism for new hires, and improving delivery and record maintenance of an annual review of the AODA.
• A targeted assessment of the accessibility of our meeting spaces. This will include in-person, virtual, and hybrid opportunities. Our goal is to improve accessibility related to audio, visual, and use of physical space. This will include an assessment of the spaces and tools we currently have, as well as seeking feedback from employees as well as guidance from experts on how we can create more accessible experiences.
• Ongoing review of accessibility considerations, opportunities, and barriers, as it relates to the hybrid working model implemented at UWEO for both the physical and virtual workplace environments.
• Create a more comprehensive collection and review of data related to accessibility, while maintaining confidentiality, inclusive of feedback of employees with disabilities, job seeker feedback, as well as feedback from external stakeholders with disabilities who experience our spaces and resources. Although this information is currently available and reviewed separately, it would be valuable to collect and view it wholly under the accessibility lens.

For More Information

To learn about our website accessibility, please visit  https://www.unitedwayeo.ca/accessibility/

To learn more about our Commitment to Accessible Client Service, please visit https://www.unitedwayeo.ca/commitment-to-accessible-client-service/

For more information on this accessibility plan, please contact Shannon Bruce at sbruce@unitedwayeo.ca or 613-295-5312

Standard and accessible formats of this document are free on request from

United Way East Ontario
Email: info@unitedwayeo.ca
Telephone: 613.228.6700

By mail:

United Way East Ontario
363 Coventry Road
Ottawa, ON K1K 2C5

Updated October 18, 2024