The College uses Dispute Resolution (DR) to help resolve complaints regarding members of the profession. DR is voluntary and without prejudice to the parties. The outcomes of the process are similar to those that would be expected following a full investigation and/or contested hearing.
Summaries of the cases reported here are based on facts derived from agreements signed by the College Registrar and the member, which are ratifed by the Investigation Committee. Publication is a provision of the agreements.
Accessibility measures
College continues to ensure access to service
The College is putting new measures in place to ensure that people with disabilities continue to receive respectful and appropriate customer service.
"The College welcomed the recent passage of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act as an opportunity to enhance the services it provides to members, applicants and the public that take into account the unique needs of all individuals," says College Registrar Michael Salvatori, OCT.
The Act was developed to make the province barrier free by 2025. As a first step, organizations and businesses are implementing new customer-service accessibility standards.
What is the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act?
The Act aims to make Ontario barrier free by developing accessibility standards in five areas: customer service, employment, information and communications, transportation, and built environment. One in seven people in Ontario have a disability, and over the next 20 years that number is expected to rise to one in five.
To improve accessibility for all Ontarians, businesses with at least one employee must comply with the first accessibility standard – customer service – by January 1, 2012. The remainder of the standards will be implemented in stages over the next few years.
What does accessible customer service mean?
There are different types of disabilities, some visible, some invisible. The customer-service accessibility standards were designed to remove barriers faced by those with vision, hearing, mental health, learning, physical, intellectual, speech or language disabilities.
Offering accessible customer service is not about making physical changes to a building. It is about understanding that customers with disabilities may have different needs. Helping someone with a disability may be as simple as asking, "How can I help?"
What does this mean for the Ontario College of Teachers?
The College has always aimed to provide accessible customer service and will continue to implement new measures. Under the College's customer-service policy, employees are expected to deliver service that acknowledges the nature of an individual's disability and respects a person's desire for independence, dignity and equal opportunity.
Currently, the College communicates with its clients with disabilities in a variety of ways. For example, the College receives and responds to inquiries from members and the public in person, on the telephone, using TTY services and through e-mail.
Building on its model of excellent customer service, the College will implement numerous measures, including:
- assisting persons with disabilities, over the phone or in person, to fill out College forms
- installing screen-reader software on computers in the public areas of the College to serve individuals who are visually impaired
- updating the College's web site to include copies of College documents that can be read by using screen-reader software
- bringing in a support person, for example a sign-language interpreter, to assist when required during College-sponsored events or activities
- establishing a feedback mechanism on the College web site so that individuals can comment or make suggestions about the College's service to persons with disabilities.
Will College employees receive customer-service accessibility training?
Yes. The College is educating staff about different kinds of disabilities and how to offer help that is appropriate and respectful.
Customer-service accessibility training is underway for all College staff. Comprehensive training is provided to employees who have regular interaction with College members and the public and includes:
- how to interact and communicate with persons with various types of disabilities
- how to interact with persons with disabilities who use an assistive device or require the assistance of a guide dog or other service animal or the assistance of a support person
- how to use equipment or devices available on the College's premises or otherwise provided by the College that may help with the provision of goods and services to a person with a disability
- what to do if a person with a particular type of disability is having difficulty accessing the College's goods or services.
How can I learn more about what the College is doing to comply with the Act?
For more information about the College's commitment to the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, visit www.oct.ca/about/accessibility.aspx.
