Accessibility is a major issue for so many Ontarians; recent estimates are that 1 in 7 people are living with a disability. The government of Ontario is committed to making our province more accessible and have developed a 20 year plan with the goal of implementing the changes needed in order to make work and daily life much more accessible than it is today.
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) has already been implemented in some way in all sectors and focuses on achieving accessibility in several different areas such as customer service, communications, transportation and employment. In order to implement sustainable change, we need to work together. Our government is taking accessibility seriously and so should we.
Here are a few things that you may not know about AODA:
- There are, and will continue to be, mandatory requirements and deadlines until 2025.
- Organizations can fall into 1 of 5 categories where compliance and deadline requirements vary.
- Letters are being sent out for non-compliance, requiring immediate action.
- There are severe penalties of up to $50,000 per day for non-compliance.
- There are upcoming compliance requirements as soon as this January 1st 2014!
Are you compliant? Do you know what your organizational requirements and deadlines are?
