Many separate accessibility standards development processes exist in Canada. Ontario, Manitoba, and Nova Scotia all have laws that mandate creation of provincial accessibility standards. In addition, the Accessible Canada Act mandates accessibility standards that apply to organizations under federal jurisdiction. However, the government of Canada intends to coordinate federal and provincial accessibility laws. Moreover, the third review of the AODA recommends that the Ontario government should support this aim by aligning its accessibility law, the AODA, with the laws of other provinces and the country. If the governments work together to make these laws more similar, AODA standards may change to align with laws in other places across the country. In this article, we will explore accessible customer service standards in Ontario and Manitoba.
Accessible Customer service Standards in Ontario and Manitoba
The Customer service Standards under the AODA and the Accessible Customer service Standard under the Accessibility for Manitobans Act both require organizations to make service accessible for customers with disabilities. Moreover, both standards require many of the same processes and practices to ensure accessibility. For instance, both standards require service providers in the public and private sectors to:
- Have documented customer service policies
- Welcome customers with:
- Train workers to interact appropriately with customers who have disabilities
- communicate with customers in ways that take their disabilities into account
- Provide information accessibly
- Have accessible feedback processes
- Notify customers about temporary service disruptions
Differences Between Standards
However, there are many important differences between the standards for accessible customer service in Ontario and Manitoba. Moreover, both of these standards may change over time to improve accessibility or to better align with:
- Each other
- Future accessibility standards in other provinces
- The Accessible Canada Act
Therefore, our next series of articles will explore differences between Ontario’s and Manitoba’s mandates for accessible customer service.