Accessibility Plan and Policies for The Waterside Inn
The Waterside Inn strives to meet the needs of its employees and customers with disabilities and to remove and prevent barriers to accessibility. The Waterside Inn is committed to fulfilling its requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. This accessibility plan outlines the policies and actions that The Waterside Inn will put in placeto improve opportunities for people with disabilities.
Statement of Commitment
The Waterside Inn is committed to treating all people in a way that allows them to maintain their dignity and independence. We believe in integration and equal opportunity. We are committed to meeting the needs of people with disabilities in a timely manner and will do so by preventing and removing barriers to accessibility and meeting accessibility requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
Customer Service
The Waterside Inn is committed to providing accessible customer service to people with disabilities. We will provide our guests with disabilities with goods and services of the same quality and value as other guests.
The Waterside Inn has adopted policies and procedures for Accessibility Standards for Customer Service. These policies and procedures are publicly available on our website. Employees are trained on these policies and procedures
Accessible Emergency Information
The Waterside Inn is committed to providing customers and clients with publicly available emergency information in an accessible way upon request. We will also provide employees with disabilities with individualized emergency response information when necessary.
Training
The Waterside Inn is committed to provide training in the requirements of Ontario’s accessibility laws and the Ontario Human Rights Code as it applies to people with disabilities.
The Waterside Inn will provide training to employees, volunteers and other staff members on Ontario’s accessibility laws and on the Human Rights Code as it relates to people with disabilities. Training will be provided in a way that best suits the duties of employees, volunteers and other staff members.
The Waterside Inn will take the following steps to ensure employees are provided with the training needed to meet Ontario’s accessible laws:
- Distribution of our Policy and Procedure communication; and
- Training of all applicable employees as required.
Kiosks
The Waterside Inn does not have any self-service kiosks. Should we consider implementing self-service kiosks, we will consider the needs of people with disabilities when designing, procuring or acquiring self-service kiosks.
The Waterside Inn will ensure that in the event that self-service kiosks become necessary or are implemented, we will follow the requirements of the act.
Information and Communications
The Waterside Inn is committed to meeting the communication needs of people with disabilities. We will consult with people with disabilities to determine their information and communication needs, as required.
The Waterside Inn will work with its web designer to meet World Wide Web Consortium Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 Level AA for its website in accordance with Ontario’s accessibility laws.
The Waterside Inn will provide documents related to accessible customer service on its website and will provide these documents in an accessible format or with communication support upon request. We will consult with the person making the request to determine the suitability of the format or communication support. We will provide the accessible format in a timely manner and at no additional cost.
The Waterside Inn will ensure existing feedback processes are accessible to people with disabilities upon request by:
- Communication through our Website of all feedback options.
- Training of applicable staff members to ensure any requests are met.
Employment
The Waterside Inn is committed to fair and accessible employment practices.
We will take the following steps to notify the public and staff that, when requested, The Waterside Inn will accommodate people with disabilities during the recruitment and assessment processes and when people are hired:
- Notify job applicants that accommodations can be made during recruitment and hiring in job postings;
- Notify applicants that we will provide accommodation during employment for persons with disabilities; and
- Managerial training to ensure that those responsible for hiring are aware of our policies to accommodate people with disabilities during the recruitment and assessment process and during employment.
The Waterside Inn will take the following steps to provide accommodation during employment for persons with disabilities:
- develop individual accommodation plans for persons with disabilities, as required; and
- develop return-to-work plans for employees that have been absent due to a disability.
We will take the following steps to ensure the accessibility needs of employees with disabilities are taken into account if The Waterside Inn is using performance management, career development and redeployment processes:
- Managerial Training; and
- Employee Awareness Training.
The Waterside Inn will take the following steps to prevent and remove other accessibility barriers identified:
- Inspection and Identification of potential barriers.
- Appropriate action on removal and prevention.
Design of Public Spaces
The Waterside Inn will meet the Accessibility Standards for the Design of Public Spaces when building or making major modifications to public spaces. Public spaces include:
- Recreational trails/beach access routes
- Outdoor public eating areas like rest stops or picnic areas
- Outdoor play spaces, like playgrounds in provincial parks and local communities
- Outdoor paths of travel, like sidewalks, ramps, stairs, curb ramps, rest areas and accessible pedestrian signals
- Accessible off street parking
- Service-related elements like service counters, fixed queuing lines and waiting areas
The Waterside Inn has the following procedure in place to prevent service disruptions and for emergency maintenance to its accessible parts of its public spaces.
- Service contract to address regular maintenance of equipment (e.g. elevators).
- An on-site full-time maintenance person who can address issues.
- Contact information with the front desk for contractors who they can call for emergency repairs as required.
- In the event of a service disruption, we will notify the public of the service disruption and alternatives available.
For more information
For more information on this accessibility plan, please contact Toni Frankfurter at
Phone: (905) 891-5661
Email: tfrankfurter@watersideinn.ca