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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCSD-09-065 - Accessibility Standards for Customer Service PolicyREPORT REPORT TO: Finance and Corporate Services Committee DATE OF MEETING: November 16, 2009 SUBMITTED BY: Mark Hildebrand, Director, Community Programs and Services (ext. 2687) PREPARED BY: Kelly Steiss, Inclusion Coordinator (ext. 2226) WARD(S) INVOLVED: All DATE OF REPORT: October 21, 2009 REPORT NO.: CSD-09-065 SUBJECT: ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE POLICY RECOMMENDATION: That the Accessibility Standards for Customer Service policy attached to CSD-09-065 be adopted. That Council Policy I-330, Animal in City Facilities be amended to clarify and make consistent the definition of a service animal. BACKGROUND: The Customer Service Regulation (Ontario Regulation 429/07) under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) requires the City of Kitchener, as a municipality to: 1. Establish policies, procedures and practices governing the provision of goods and services to persons with disabilities. rd 2. Ensure that all staff, volunteers and any 3 party providing service for, or on behalf of, the municipality receives training on accessible customer service. 3. Provide a process for receiving and responding to feedback from persons with disabilities. Compliance to meet all requirements of the Customer Service regulation is January 1, 2010. REPORT: Accessibility Standards for Customer Service Policy In the creation of this policy, staff from various departments across the Corporation were consulted on their departmental practices with respect to the provision of Customer Service and how to best meet the requirement of this legislation with respect to the provision of Customer Service for persons with disabilities. This includes how goods and services are provided to è ó ï rd persons with disabilities, the training of staff, volunteers and 3 parties with respect to accessible customer service, communication, service animals, support persons, assistive devices, notice of service disruptions and feedback. Additionally, staff consulted other municipalities across the province. The resulting policy, attached to CSD 09-065 is one that is consistent with other municipalities across the province and one that is reflective of the Customer Service legislation. This policy serves as a good starting point. Staff will be able to further refine their procedures and practices as it makes sense for how their department delivers goods and services to the community. Service Animal Definition In order to be consistent Council Policy, the definition of ‘service animal’ in Council Policy I-330, Animals in Facilities, should be amended to reflect the definition as per the Customer Service policy. The definition under Council Policy I-330 defines a service animal as an animal trained at an accredited facility, that the animal wears a harness or uniform for identification and the person who requires the service animal can provide, on request, an identification card from an accredited facility. While the definition created under Policy I-330 was an acceptable standard at the time, the current definition of ‘service animal’ as defined by the Customer Service regulation (429/07) has been updated and, in addition to identifying a service animal as a guide dog, provides for an animal to accompany a person with a disability under the authority of a physician or a nurse through a letter confirming that the person requires such an animal for reasons relating to his or her disability. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: The development of policies, procedures and practices were realized within current resources. Costs may be associated with respect to the resources required in the implementation of the procedures and practices of this policy. This includes but is not limited to the costs to produce the policy document in alternate formats, ongoing training and the ability to communicate in a manner that takes into account the person’s disability, such as American Sign Language (ASL). At this time, it is not possible for staff to comment on the potential financial implications. COMMUNICATIONS: The Customer Service regulation sets out requirements that notice be given that the documents required by this Regulation are available upon request. A communication plan has been developed with the Corporate Communications Department to advise the public, vendors, volunteers and staff about this new policy and how to obtain these documents. ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Pauline Houston, General Manager, Community Services è ó î COUNCIL POLICY RESOLUTION POLICY NUMBERDATE: : I- November 9, 2009 POLICY TYPE : SUBJECTACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE : POLICY CONTENT: 1. Requirements Under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, the Ontario Regulation 429/07, Accessibility Standards for Customer Service, requires every provider of goods and services to establish policies, practices and procedures governing the provision of its goods and services to persons with disabilities. 2. Policy Statement The City of Kitchener values the contributions and participation of all citizens in the life of the City. To facilitate this involvement, the City of Kitchener is committed to providing goods and services that are accessible to all. 3. Definitions Assistive Devices For the purposes of this policy, ‘assistive devices’ are defined as any piece of equipment or product that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of persons with disabilities. Service Animal For the purposes of this policy, a ‘service animal’ is defined as either: i)A ‘guide dog’ as defined in section 1 of the Blind Persons Rights’ Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.B.7; or ii)An animal used by a person with a disability, including but not limited to a dog, if: a.It is readily apparent that such animal is used by the person for reasons related to his or her disability; or b.If the person provides a letter from a physician or nurse confirming that the person requires such animal for reasons relating to his or her disability. Service Disruption For the purposes of this policy, a ‘service disruption’ is defined as planned or unplanned unavailability of facilities or services operated by the City of Kitchener including but not limited to programs, washroom facilities, elevators and websites. è ó í Support Persons For the purpose of this policy, a ‘support person’ is defined as, in relation to a person with a disability, another person who accompanies him or her in order to help with communication, mobility, personal care or medical needs or with access to goods or services. 4.General Principles a. Provision of Goods and Services to Persons with Disabilities The City of Kitchener will use reasonable efforts to ensure that its policies practices and procedures promote accessibility and reflect the principles of independence, integration, dignity and equal opportunity. b. Training The City of Kitchener will ensure that the following persons receive training in Accessibility Standards for Customer Service: (a)All employees, volunteers, agents and those other third parties who deal with members of the public on behalf of the City. (b)Every person who participates in the developing the provider’s policies, practices and procedures governing the provision of goods and services to members of the public or other third parties. Training will be provided as soon as practicable upon an individual being assigned the applicable duties and on an ongoing basis in connection with changes to City policies, practices and procedures governing the provision of goods and services to persons with disabilities. Training will include the following but not limited to: 1.A review of the purposes of the Act and the requirements of the Regulation. 2.How to interact and communicate with persons with various types of disability. 3.How to interact with persons with disabilities who use an assistive device or require the assistance of a guide dog or other service animal or the assistance of a support person. 4.How to use equipment or devices available on the City’s premise or otherwise provided by the City that may help with the provision of goods or services to a person with a disability. 5.What to do if a person with a particular type of disability is having difficulty accessing the City’s goods or services. The City will keep records of the training provided including dates the training is provided and the number of persons trained. c. Communication with Persons with Disabilities When communicating with a person with a disability, the City will do so in a manner that takes into account the person’s disability. The individual with a disability may request an accommodation and/or alternate formats to facilitate their interaction with the City. City è ó ì staff and volunteers will work with the individual with a disability to provide a timely and appropriate accommodation and/or alternate format. d. Service Animals The City is committed to welcoming people with disabilities who are accompanied by a service animal onto all City of Kitchener owned and operated public facilities that are open to the public. The City will ensure that the individual is permitted to keep the animal with him or her unless the animal is otherwise excluded by law. If a service animal is excluded by law, the City will ensure that alternate means are available to enable the person with a disability to obtain, use or benefit from the City’s goods and services. If it is not readily apparent that the animal is a service animal, the City may ask the person with a disability for a letter from a physician or a nurse confirming that the person requires the animal for reasons relating to his or her disability. It is the responsibility of the person with a disability to ensure that his or her service animal is kept in control at all times. e. Support Persons A person with a disability may participate in City of Kitchener programs and services accompanied by a support person. A support person, when assisting a person with a disability to obtain, use or benefit from the City’s goods and services will be permitted to attend at no-charge. To facilitate the attendance of a support person, the City of Kitchener recognizes the Personal Attendant for Leisure (PAL) Card. The City may require a person with a disability to be accompanied by a support person while on City premises in situations where it is necessary to protect the health and safety of the person with a disability of the health and safety of others on the premises. If, in the presence of a support person, personal information is being discussed, City staff must ensure that the individual consents to the support person being present. Consent can be given verbally or in writing f. Assistive Devices The City shall use reasonable efforts to allow persons with disabilities to use their own assistive devices to access goods and/or services. It is the responsibility of the person with a disability to ensure that his or her assistive device is operated in a safe and controlled manner at all times. The City provides a variety of assistive devices at its facilities. A detailed list and information on the operating procedures for those devices will be available on the City’s website or by requesting a copy from the facility where the device exists. è ó ë g. Notice of Service Disruptions The City is aware that the operation of its services and facilities is important to the public. However, temporary disruptions in the City’s services and facilities may occur. The City will make reasonable effort to provide notice to the public of the disruption. The notice will include information about the reason for the disruption, its anticipated duration and a description of alternative facilities or services, if any, that may be available. The City will make reasonable effort to provide advance notice of planned disruption. In situations of unplanned disruption, advance notice may not be possible. In such instances, the City will provide notice as soon as possible. The City will provide notice by posting the information in visible places and/or on the City’s website as soon as reasonably possible. h. Feedback The City of Kitchener values the feedback from its citizens. Feedback from a member of the public about the delivery of goods and services to persons with disabilities may be submitted by telephone, in person, in writing, in electronic format, through TTY or through other methods. Following the Citizen Service Standards, staff will respond within one business day to the author of the feedback. The author of the feedback will be provided with a response in the format in which the feedback was received and will outline the actions taken to resolve the concern, if any. 4. Availability of Accessibility Standards for Customer Service Documents This policy and any other documents key to the delivery of goods and services will be made available on the City’s website and available through the City Clerk’s Office. This document can be provided in alternate formats, upon request. è ó ê