Accessibility

Multi-Year Accessibility Plan

Purpose

This multi-year Accessibility Plan is developed in accordance with the Integration Accessibility Standards Regulation under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. It incorporates the intentions of BDO Lixar to meet its obligations under the Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2001 to make Ontario completely accessible by 2025. This plan describes the measures we will take to identify, remove and prevent barriers to people with disabilities that work and participate in the BDO Lixar community and environment including employees, agents, contractors, volunteers, student on placement, customers and visitors. This plan will be guided by BDO Lixar’s Accessible Service Plan and addresses the following:

The commitment to review and update the multi-year accessibility plan every 5 years
Training
Definitions of terms covered in BDO Lixar’s Accessible Service Plan
The provision of goods and services to persons with disabilities
The use of assistive devices by persons with disabilities
The use of service animals by persons with disabilities
The use of support persons by persons with disabilities
Notice of temporary disruptions in services and facilities
Customer feedback regarding the provision of goods and services to persons with disabilities
Notice of availability to public and format of documents

Commitment to Accessibility Planning

BDO Lixar is committed to excellence in serving all customers, staff and visitors including people with disabilities. We will carry out our functions in a manner that delivers an accessible customer service experience.

BDO Lixar is committed to providing our goods and services in a way that respects the dignity and independence of persons with disabilities. This commitment will be incorporated whenever possible and will ensure that persons with disabilities will benefit from the same services, in the same place and in similar ways of others. We will evaluate our multi-year accessibility plan every 5 years and modify it accordingly to keep it up to date, most effective and respectful.

We are committed to improving access to facilities, policies, programs, practices and services for everyone. Consideration of ongoing identification of barriers will be the responsibility of BDO Lixar and will, wherever practicable, be incorporated in the multi-year plan.

Actions Taken

BDO Lixar has trained and will continue to provide training to all employees and others who deal with the public or third parties on BDO Lixar’s behalf. The training will be provided to new hires on their first day at BDO Lixar.

Training will include:

An overview of the Accessibility for Ontarians and Disabilities Act, 2005 and the requirements of the customer service standard
BDO Lixar’s accessible service plan
How to interact and communicate with people with various types of disabilities
How to interact with assistive devices, service animals, or support persons that may be used by customers with various disabilities
How to help people with disabilities access the entire workplace
What to do if a person with a disability is having difficulty accessing necessary areas of BDO Lixar’s workplace

Staff will also be trained when changes are made to the accessible service plan.

Definitions

Disability:

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.

Assistive Devices:

A device used to assist persons with disabilities in carrying out activities or in accessing the services of persons or organizations covered by the Customer Service Standard. These may include wheelchairs, hearing aids, canes, and screen readers.

Service Animals:

Any animal used by a person with a disability for reasons relating to the disability where it is apparent that the animal is used by the person for reasons relating to his or her disability.

Support Person:

A person who accompanies a person with a disability in order to assist him or her with their communication, mobility, personal care, medical needs or with access to goods or services.

General Provisions

The Provision of Goods and Services to Persons with Disabilities

BDO Lixar will use reasonable efforts to guarantee that its policies, practices and procedures are consistent with the following principles:

BDO Lixar.’s goods and services are provided in a way that respects the dignity and independence of persons with disabilities
The provision of BDO Lixar’s goods and services to persons with disabilities are integrated with those provided to persons who do not have disabilities unless an alternative measure is necessary to enable a person with a disability to obtain, use or benefit from our goods or services
Persons with disabilities are given an opportunity equal to that of persons without disabilities to obtain, use or benefit from BDO Lixar’s goods and services.

Communication with persons with disabilities involves taking into consideration their disability
Allowing people with disabilities to bring their service animal, assistive devices, support person to BDO Lixar and providing the appropriate training to staff beforehand

Assistive Devices and other Measures that Assist with Accessibility

An assistive device is any tool, piece of technology, or equipment that a person with a disability uses to help them with daily living. These could include a wheelchair, hearing aids, white canes, listening device, etc. We will ensure that our staff is trained and familiar with various assistive devices that may be used by people with disabilities while accessing our workplace.

We welcome people with disabilities and their service animals. Service animals are allowed on the parts of our premises that are open to the public. Our staff is also fully trained in how to deal with service animals.

A person with a disability who is accompanied by a support person will be allowed to have that person accompany them on our premises.

Exceptions to these conditions may occur in situations where BDO Lixar has deemed the assistive devices as a possible risk to the health and safety of a person with a disability or the health and safety of others on the premises. In these cases and others, BDO Lixar may offer a person with a disability other reasonable measures to assist him or her in obtaining, using and benefitting from our goods and services wherever we have such other measures available. It should be noted that it is the responsibility of the person with the disability to ensure that his or her assistive device is operated in a safe and controlled manner at all times. Staff is not allowed to feed service dogs, however, water may be provided only when the individual permits it, otherwise, staff must ask for permission to do so.

Notice of Temporary Disruption

In the event of a planned or unexpected disruption to services or facilities for visitors with disabilities, such as power outages and workplace constructions, BDO Lixar will notify all visitors promptly. This clearly posted notice will include information about the reason for the disruption, its anticipated length of time, and a description of alternative facilities or services, if available. When possible, we will be notifying potential visitors ahead of time of any potential disruptions and we will attempt to accommodate their needs as best we can. Expected visitors will be informed ahead of time of any foreseeable disruptions.

Feedback

Feedback is encouraged and always welcome. Visitors who wish to provide feedback on how BDO Lixar has provided accessibility services for people with disabilities can do so via phone, in person, through email, or other methods. All feedback will be directed to BDO Lixar’s Human Resources Director, Sarah Boardman. Visitors can expect to hear back in 2-3 days. Complaints will be addressed according to our company’s regular complaint management procedures.

Availability and Format of Documents Required by the Accessibility Standards for Customer Service (Ontario Regulation 429/07)

This publication is available through:

BDO Lixar’s website: www.lixar.com.
Hard copies will be made available to all staff at both Head Quarters and the East Coast Offices.
Accessible formats of the plan will be available upon contact with the Human Resources department.

All documents required by the Accessibility Standards for Customer Service including BDO Lixar’s Accessible Service Plan, policies, procedures, and practices, notices of temporary disruptions, training records, and written feedback process are available upon request.

BDO Lixar IT Accessibility Policy

Access for Ontarians with Disabilities Act

BDO Lixar is committed to improving accessibility. We will put the following policies into practice as required by the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.

Purpose

BDO Lixar is committed to training staff on Ontario’s accessibility laws and on accessibility aspects of the Human Rights Code that apply to persons with disabilities. Training will be proved in a way that best suits the duties of employees, volunteers and other staff members.

Any of our policies that do not respect and promote the dignity and independence of people with disabilities will be modified or removed.

Information and Communications

BDO Lixar is committed to meeting the communication needs of people with disabilities. When asked, we will provide information and communications materials in accessible formats or with communication supports. This includes publicly available information about our services and facilities as well as publicly available emergency information.

BDO Lixar will consult with people with disabilities to determine their information and communication needs.

Employment

BDO Lixar will notify the public and staff that, when requested, we will accommodate disabilities during recruitment and assessment processes and when people are hired. If needed, we will provide customized workplace emergency information to employees who have a disability. Performance management and career development will take into account the accessibility needs of employees with disabilities.