Intent

Kleenway Services Inc. (the “Company”) is committed to meeting the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA). Our goal is to provide a barrier-free environment for all stakeholders, including customers, employees, job applicants, suppliers, and visitors who enter Company premises, work for the Company, access information provided by the Company, or use the Company’s services.

Through the implementation of accessibility standards, we will work to remove barriers that may prevent or limit persons with disabilities from gaining employment with the Company, receiving services, navigating the built environment, and receiving information and communication.

Accessible formats: include large print, recorded audio and electronic formats, braille, and other formats usable by persons with disabilities.

Assistive device: a technical aid, communication device, or other instrument that is used to maintain or improve the functional abilities of people with disabilities.

Communication supports: captioning, alternative and augmentative communication supports, plain language, sign language, and other supports that facilitate effective communications.

Conversion-ready: an electronic or digital format that facilitates conversion to an acceptable format.

Disability: the temporary, prolonged, or permanent reduction or absence of the ability to perform certain commonplace activities or roles, sometimes referred to as “activities of daily living.”

Service animal: an animal that can be recognized by visual indicators such as a vest or harness that is being used by an individual with a disability for reasons relating to the person’s disability.

Support person: a person who accompanies an individual with a disability to help with communication, mobility, personal care, medical needs, or access to goods and services.

Employment

The Company will make every reasonable effort to identify, remove, and prevent barriers by developing inclusive employment procedures that support persons with disabilities with accommodations during the recruitment and selection stages, and throughout the employment life cycle.

Recruitment and Hiring

The Company is committed to making hiring decisions that are based on candidates’ skills, qualifications, and experience relevant to each position.

The Company understands that improving workplace accessibility and ensuring an accessible recruitment and selection process for applicants with disabilities can expand the pool of talented candidates. Upon request, the Company will provide candidates with reasonable accommodations during the interview and selection process. Where an accommodation is requested, the Company will consult with the applicant to arrange suitable accommodations, such as providing the application in an alternate or accessible format.

Training and Development

The Company recognizes that skills development and career planning can benefit the employment experience, increase engagement, and reduce turnover for individuals with disabilities. The Company will align training and development programs to meet the needs of employees with disabilities and provide training as soon as reasonably practicable upon the person being assigned to applicable duties. Training programs will be designed with flexibility to tailor these to individual employees, such as providing training materials in accessible or conversion-ready formats. The Company will consider barriers when implementing performance management processes, and when offering career development, employment support, and advancement opportunities.

Communication

The Company will consult with the employee to provide or arrange for the provision of accessible formats and communication supports for:

• information that is needed to perform the employee’s job, and
• information that is generally available to employees in workplace.

Such accessible formats and communication supports are conversion-ready and will be provided in a timely manner and at no additional cost to employees.

When communicating with or providing information to an employee who requires accommodation or assistance due to a disability, the Company will ensure that all communication with the individual is completed in a manner that takes into account the individual’s disability. Where an assistive device is used, the Company will reasonably accommodate the use of the device.

Emergency Response

If necessary or upon request, the Company will create individualized workplace emergency response plans for employees with disabilities. The emergency response plan will consider the unique challenges created by the individual’s disability and the physical nature of the workplace and will be created in consultation with the employee. If an employee with a disability requires assistance from a support person during an emergency, the Company will designate a fellow employee to act as such.

If an employee is assigned to a support person under their individualized workplace emergency response information, the Company will obtain the employee’s consent for sharing their emergency response plan with the person designated by the Company to help the employee.

Customized emergency response plans will be reviewed when:

• the employee moves to a different physical location in the organization
• the employee’s accommodation needs change
• emergency response plans are reviewed, and
• the Company reviews general emergency response policies.

Accommodation

The Company will observe its duty to accommodate employees with disabilities. Personalized accommodation plans will be designed to allow employees to contribute and participate in job-related functions and activities. The process of accommodating individuals will take a consultative approach and is a shared obligation of the Company and the employee.

Return to Work

The Company will develop and implement return-to-work processes for employees who are absent from work due to a disability and require accommodations to return to work. The Company will work with the employee to develop an individualized return-to-work plan and support the employee in the transition period by addressing barriers. As part of the process, the Company will document steps taken to facilitate the employee’s return to work.

Redeployment

If an employee cannot be accommodated in their current position, even with accommodations to either the job processes or work hours, the Company will consider placing the employee in an alternative position within the Company. The Company will work with the employee’s supervisor, HR, and union representatives (if applicable), as well as the employee to determine whether there is another suitable position available. If the accommodation requires a substantial change in the position, involving duties or hours, the Company will consider redesigning the position.

Inability to Accommodate

As required by law, the Company will provide workplace accommodation up to the point of undue hardship. Undue hardship may occur where it is established that no forms of appropriate accommodation exist, or where the creation of accommodation would create a health and safety hazard, or cause unreasonable costs for the Company.

Customer Service

Access to Goods and Services

The Company will seek to provide barrier-free access to its services for all customers. Where barriers cannot be removed, alternate means for accessing services will be provided to the best of the Company’s ability.

Support Persons and Service Animals

If a customer with a disability is accompanied by a support person, the Company will ensure that both people may enter the premises together and that the customer is not prevented from having access to the support person. A customer with a disability accompanied by a service animal will be allowed access to premises that are open to the public, unless otherwise excluded by law.

If the Company has to decide if a person with a disability needs to be accompanied by a support person when accessing our services, we will decide only after consulting with the person with the disability, and after considering the available evidence of:

• a support person being necessary to protect the health or safety of the person with the disability, or the health or safety of others on the premises; and
• there being no other reasonable way to protect the health or safety of the person with the disability, or the health or safety of others on the premises.

The Company will attempt to accommodate the customer and the support person to sit with one another. In situations where confidential information may be discussed, consent will be obtained from the customer before any potentially confidential information is mentioned in front of the support person.

In the event of a service animal being excluded from Company premises by law or health and safety reasons, we are committed to applying other measures to enable a person with a disability to obtain, use, or benefit from the goods, services, and facilities we offer. These can include offering an alternative place to meet, and making a safe space available where the service animal may wait while an employee provides assistance as a sighted guide to the person with the disability in the absence of their service animal.

Communication

The Company understands the importance of accessible digital and non-digital forms of communication and will do its best to provide accessible types of communication and information to all individuals with disabilities. Such accessible formats and communication supports will be provided upon request, in a timely manner, and at no additional cost.

Service Disruptions

Service disruptions may occur for reasons that may or may not be within the control or knowledge of the Company. In the event of any temporary disruptions to facilities or services that customers with disabilities rely on to access or use goods or services, reasonable efforts will be made to provide advance notice.

When service disruptions occur, the Company will:

• post notices in the nearest accessible entrance to the service disruption
• post information on the Company website about the disruption
• contact customers with appointments, or
• use any other method reasonable under the circumstances.

The Company will make every reasonable effort to indicate when services will resume and suggest alternatives that can be utilized during the disruption. In some circumstances, such as in the situation of unplanned temporary disruptions or emergencies, advance notice may not be possible.

Emergency Notifications

The Company will provide emergency and public safety information, plans and procedures, maps and warning signs at evacuation points, and any other emergency alert information, in accessible formats or with appropriate communication supports, upon request. The Company will:

• work with individuals requesting information and see how to best meet their needs
• ensure emergency information can be seen, read, and heard by anyone, including people with disabilities, and
• if a person with a disability requires assistance from a support person in case of an emergency, make sure that an employee is available to act as such.

Customer Feedback

Kleenway welcomes feedback on the service provided to persons with disabilities. Feedback forms along with alternate methods of providing feedback, such as verbally (in person or by telephone) or written (hand-written, delivered, website or email), are available upon request. The Company will provide or arrange for accessible formats and communication supports, upon request. Customers can send written feedback to:

Kleenway Services Inc.
30 Leek Crescent, Suite 302
Richmond Hill, Ontario, L4B 4N8
1.888.638.5587
hr@kleenwayservices.com

People who wish to provide feedback by completing an onsite customer feedback form or verbally can do so to any Kleenway employee. Customers who provide formal feedback will receive acknowledgment of their feedback, along with any resulting actions based on concerns or complaints that were submitted.

Building Accessibility

The Company will work to ensure that the built environment, including building interior and exterior, are designed to facilitate access to services for customers and employees. If areas of the built environment are not accessible for certain individuals with disabilities, the Company will work with the individual to provide an alternate means of access.

Training

As part of the Company’s continuous need for compliance, AODA training, in the form of online modules, will be provided to:

• every employee and contractor
• every person who provides services on its behalf.

Training will cover the following:

• a review of the purpose of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005
• instructions on how to interact and communicate with people with various types of disabilities
• instructions on how to interact with people with disabilities who:
• use assistive devices
• require the assistance of a guide dog, service dog, or other service animal, or
• require assistance from a support person.
• instructions on how to use equipment or devices that are available at our premises or that we provide that may help people with disabilities
• instructions on what to do if a person with a disability is having difficulty accessing your services
• the Company’s policy and practices pertaining to providing accessible service to customers with disabilities.

Training Schedule

The Company will provide training in the first two weeks of a new hire’s employment, as part of their orientation. Revised training will be provided in the event of changes to legislation, policy, or practices.

Record of Training

The Company will keep a record of training that includes the dates training was provided and the number of employees who attended the training.