Message from the CEO
A Farber Associates and its affiliates (“Farber”), through its leadership team, place a great importance on providing an experience to all staff and clients that allows equal participation to those with disabilities. This is illustrated in our Statement of Commitment:
“Farber is committed to ensuring equal access and participation for people with disabilities. We are committed to treating people with disabilities in a way that allows them to maintain their dignity and independence.
We believe in integration, and we are committed to meeting the needs of people with disabilities in a timely manner. We will do so by removing and preventing barriers to accessibility and by meeting our accessibility requirements under Ontario’s accessibility laws.”
An example of Farber’s success in encouraging participation is our flexible approach to remote access. Clients and staff can meet virtually in an environment that is comfortable to them, where in-person meetings might not have been feasible. Alternatively, in a situation where client or member of staff might have trouble with a virtual interaction, an in-person meeting is always available to them.
Shane Pennell
Chief Executive Officer
Introduction
Farber strives to meet the needs of its employees and customers with disabilities and is working hard to remove and prevent barriers to accessibility.
We are committed to fulfilling our requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. This accessibility plan outlines the steps we are taking to meet those requirements and to improve opportunities for people with disabilities.
Our plan shows how we will play our role in making Ontario an accessible province for all Ontarians.
The plan is reviewed and updated at least once every five years.
We train every person as soon as practicable after being hired and provide training in respect of any changes to the policies.
We maintain records of the training provided including the dates on which the training was provided and the number of individuals to whom it was provided.
Past Achievements to Remove and Prevent Barriers
Farber has completed the following accessibility initiatives.
Customer Service
Farber has remained in compliance with the Customer Service Standards. Customers have many avenues to submit feedback such as online, in person or telephone. Farber engages in the ongoing services of the Canadian Hearing Society for interpretation services. Farber will partner with CNIB to support customers with impaired vision and will support service animals and support persons.
Information and Communications
Farber has made updates to its website with a text-to-speech system to accommodate individuals with visual impairments and enable users to adjust font sizes.
Employment
Farber has engaged with national charities such as March of Dimes to provide meaningful opportunities to people with disabilities and will strive to promote a workplace that embraces disabled people.
Strategies and Actions
Customer Service
Farber is committed to providing accessible customer service to people with disabilities. This means that we will provide goods, services and facilities to people with disabilities with the same high quality and timeliness as others.
Faber is planning the following initiatives to continue complying with the Customer Service Standards:
- Continue to partner with organizations for interpretation services to serve our clients.
- Establish a process to seek feedback from our clients with disabilities to comment on how Farber provides accessible customer service.
- Continue to provide AODA training to employees upon hire.
Information and Communications
Farber is committed to making our information and communications accessible to people with disabilities.
Continue to provide text-to-speech services and accommodate employees and clients with disabilities on a case-by-case basis, work with organizations for interpretation services.
Employment
Farber is committed to fair and accessible employment practices.
Farber will continue its commitment as an equal opportunity employer and will aim to work with different charities and organizations in its recruitment efforts to provide meaningful opportunities for people with disabilities. Farber will take all reasonable steps to provide accommodations for both current and prospective team members.
One initiative Farber will take by the end of 2023 is to source a disability-related employee resource group to support workers with disabilities.
For More Information
For more information on this accessibility plan please contact:
People & Culture – peopleandculture@farbergroup.com
Our accessibility plan is publicly posted at https://www.afarber.com/multi-year-accessibility-plan
Standard accessible formats of this document are free on request from
People and Culture – peopleandculture@farbergroup.com