AODA: Accessible Information and Communications Policy

Intent

Delota provides accessible information and communications for persons with disabilities, in accordance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 and its associated regulations. This policy sets out the standards for providing accessible information and communications.

Statement of Commitment

Delota is committed to providing an accessible environment for all clients, employees, job applicants, suppliers, and visitors who may enter our premises, access our information, or use our services. As an organization, we respect and comply with the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and its associated regulations. We strive to provide an accessible and welcoming environment for everyone by identifying and removing barriers in our workplace and ensuring that new barriers are not created. The company ensures that persons with disabilities are provided with equal access to opportunities. We are committed to meeting the needs of individuals with disabilities in a timely and integrative manner that respects their dignity and independence.

Definitions

Accessible formats: The way or manner in which information or communications are arranged, organized or set out for individuals. This includes, but is not limited to, large print, recorded audio and electronic formats, braille, and other formats usable by persons with disabilities.

Communication supports: Assistance on communications provided to enable individuals to function and act. This includes but is not limited to, captioning, alternative and augmentative communication supports, plain language, sign language, and other supports that facilitate effective communication.

Guidelines

Delota strives to provide information and communications to all in a format or manner that meets their needs. The company provides or arranges for the provision of accessible formats and communication supports for persons with disabilities upon request. The company also ensures that our website and web content meet the standards required by the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation to enable accessible information and communications online.

Requests for accessible formats or communication supports should be directed to the Human Resources Department through the submission of the AODA Accessible Format and Communication Support Request Form online, or download a PDF to submit in person or by email to [email protected]. The company consults with the individual making the request to ensure a suitable format or communication support is provided. Accessible formats and communication supports are provided in a timely manner and at a cost no more than the original format.

Exceptions

 These standards do not apply to:

• Products and product labels;
• Unconvertible information or communications; or
• Information that the company does not control through a contractual relationship.

 Unconvertible Information or Communications

Information or communications are classified as unconvertible where it is not technically practicable to convert them, or the technology required to make the conversion is not readily available. If Delota determines that information or communications are unconvertible, the company provides the individual who made the request with an explanation as to why and a summary of the information or communications.

AODA: Accessible Customer Service Policy

Intent

Delota is committed to providing accessible customer service in accordance with the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. This policy sets out the standards for the provision of goods, services, and facilities to the public.

Statement of Commitment

Delota is committed to providing an accessible environment for all clients, employees, job applicants, suppliers, and visitors who may enter our premises, access our information, or use our services. As an organization, we respect and comply with the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and its associated regulations. We strive to provide an accessible and welcoming environment for everyone by identifying and removing barriers in our workplace and ensuring that new barriers are not created. The company ensures that persons with disabilities are provided with equal opportunities. We are committed to meeting the needs of individuals with disabilities in a timely and integrative manner that respects their dignity and independence.

Definitions

Guide dog: A dog that has completed a training program at a designated training facility specified in the Guide Dogs Regulation and was trained to serve as a guide for a person with visual impairment.

Service animal: An animal is a service animal to assist a person with a disability if:

• The animal can be readily identified as one that is being used by the person for reasons relating to the person’s disability, as a result of visual indicators, such as the vest or harness worn by the animal; or 
• The person provides documentation from a designated regulated health professional colleges confirming that the person requires the animal for reasons relating to the disability.

Support person: In relation to a person with a disability, another person who accompanies them to assist with communication, mobility, personal care, medical needs, or access to goods, services, and facilities.

Guidelines

Delota  makes every reasonable effort to ensure that its policies, practices, and procedures are consistent with the principles of dignity, independence, integration, and equal opportunity by:

• Allowing customers with disabilities to access goods, services, and facilities in their preferred manner and at their own pace, provided it does not present a health or safety risk;
• Employing alternative methods or procedures when necessary to ensure customers with disabilities have equitable access to goods, services, and facilities;
• Taking into account individual accommodation needs when providing goods and services; and
• Communicating with considerations for  the customer’s specific needs and accommodations associated with their disabilities.

Upon request, the company provides a person with disabilities with a copy of this policy, or the information contained within it, in a format that meets their accessibility needs. Requests should be directed to the Customer Service department.

Persons with disabilities may use their own assistive devices as required when accessing goods or services or facilities. In cases where the assistive device presents a health or safety concern, or where accessibility might be an issue, the Customer Service Department should be informed so that other reasonable measures can be put in place to ensure the access of goods and services.

Guide Dogs and Service Animals

A customer with a disability who is accompanied by a guide dog or other service animal is welcome to access premises that are open to the public and keep the animal with them unless the animal is otherwise excluded by law. “No pet” policies do not apply to guide dogs or service animals. If a customer’s guide dog or service animal is excluded by law,  Delota offers alternative methods to enable the person with a disability to access goods, services, and facilities.

If it is not readily apparent that the animal is a guide dog or service animal, employees may respectfully ask whether an animal is a guide dog or service animal but must not ask the nature of the person’s disability or purpose of the animal. If they reveal the animal is not a guide dog or service animal, they should be asked to remove the animal from the premises promptly.

The customer who is accompanied by a guide dog or service animal is responsible for maintaining control of the animal at all times. If a service animal becomes out of control, causing a clear disruption or a threat to the health and safety of others, and the animal’s behaviour is not corrected by the owner, this should be reported to a manager, who may ask them to remove their service animal from the premises.

Support Persons

If a customer with a disability is accompanied by a support person, Delota will ensure that both persons may enter the premises together and that the customer is not prevented from having access to the support person. In situations where confidential information might be discussed, consent must be obtained from the customer before any potentially confidential information is mentioned in the presence of the support person.

The company may require a person with a disability to be accompanied by a support person while on the premises if the support person is required to protect the health and safety of the person with the disability or others in the workplace and there are no other reasonable measures that can be taken to ensure this. The company consults with the person with the disability and assesses available evidence before making such a decision. Employees are informed of any such arrangements.

Notice of Temporary Disruptions

Delota makes all reasonable efforts to provide notice of any temporary disruptions to facilities or services that customers with disabilities rely on to access or use goods or services. In some circumstances, notice may not be possible.

When disruptions occur without notice, the company informs customers by:

• Posting written notices in conspicuous places, including at the point of disruption and all entrances; and 
• Informing customers verbally upon arrival

The following information is provided regarding the disruption, unless it is not readily available or known:

• Goods or services that are disrupted or unavailable;
• Reason for the disruption;
• Expected duration; and
• A description of alternative services or options that are available.

Employees are informed of this information as soon as reasonably possible in the event of a disruption so that they can inform customers and respond to inquiries.

Customer Feedback

Delota has established a feedback process to provide the public with the opportunity to provide feedback on how goods, services, and facilities are provided to customers with disabilities. The company addresses feedback received on a case-by-case basis and takes any actions necessary to remedy any issues. Customers who wish to submit feedback may do so verbally (in person or by telephone), fill out the AODA Feedback Form directly online, or download a PDF and submit it in person or by email to [email protected].

AODA: Multi-year Accessibility Plan

Intent

This accessibility plan outlines the strategy of Delota to prevent and remove barriers for people with disabilities and comply with the requirements of the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005.

Statement of Commitment

Delota is committed to providing an accessible environment for all clients, employees, job applicants, suppliers, and visitors who may enter our premises, access our information, or use our services. As an organization, we respect and comply with the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, and its associated regulations. We strive to provide an accessible and welcoming environment for everyone by identifying and removing barriers in our workplace and ensuring that new barriers are not created. The company ensures that persons with disabilities are provided with equal opportunities. We are committed to meeting the needs of individuals with disabilities in a timely and integrative manner that respects their dignity and independence.

Multi-year Accessibility Plan

This plan is in effect from 2024 to 2029.

 If you have any questions or concerns about this plan or its initiatives, or if you want to receive a copy of the plan in a different accessible format, please contact Human Resources by email at [email protected].

Delota plans to take or is in the process of completing the following initiatives to prevent and remove barriers and comply with the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation:

AODA: Website Accessibility

We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the broadest possible audience, regardless of ability.

To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level. These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible to blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.

This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.

Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML, adapts its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.

Screen-reader and keyboard navigation

Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with screen-readers can read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements:

1. Screen-reader optimization: We run a process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website. In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels; descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups), and others.
   
   Additionally, the background process scans all of the website’s images. It provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag for images that are not described. It will also extract texts embedded within the image using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology. To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on as soon as they enter the website.
   
   These adjustments are compatible with popular screen readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack.
   
   
2. Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.
   
   Additionally, keyboard users will find content-skip menus available at any time by clicking Alt+2, or as the first element of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, not allowing the focus to drift outside.
   
   Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

Disability profiles supported on our website

• Epilepsy Safe Profile: this profile enables people with epilepsy to safely use the website by eliminating the risk of seizures resulting from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
• Vision Impaired Profile: this profile adjusts the website so that it is accessible to the majority of visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
• Cognitive Disability Profile: this profile provides various assistive features to help users with cognitive disabilities such as Autism, Dyslexia, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements more easily.
• ADHD Friendly Profile: this profile significantly reduces distractions and noise to help people with ADHD, and Neurodevelopmental disorders browse, read, and focus on the essential elements more easily.
• Blind Users Profile (Screen-readers): this profile adjusts the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is installed on the blind user’s computer, and this site is compatible with it.
• Keyboard Navigation Profile (Motor-Impaired): this profile enables motor-impaired persons to operate the website using the keyboard Tab, Shift+Tab, and the Enter keys. Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

Additional UI, design, and readability adjustments

1. Font adjustments: users can increase and decrease its size, change its family (type), adjust the spacing, alignment, line height, and more.
2. Color adjustments: users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds with over seven different coloring options.
3. Animations: epileptic users can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
4. Content highlighting: users can choose to emphasize essential elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
5. Audio muting: users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
6. Cognitive disorders: we utilize a search engine linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
7. Additional functions: we allow users to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.

Assistive technology and browser compatibility

We aim to support as many browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS, and NVDA (screen readers), both for Windows and MAC users.

Notes, comments, and feedback

Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs, there may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating, improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility following technological advancements. If you wish to contact the website’s owner, please use the website's form