Introduction

This section focuses on the Accessibility Standard for Customer Service, who must comply with this regulation, and the eight main requirements.

The Four Topics in This Section

• The Accessibility Standard for Customer Service

• Who Must Comply With This Law?

• The Eight Requirements of the Accessibility Standard for Customer Service

• Additional Requirements

Who Must Comply With This Law?

Since November 2018, this regulation applies to all Manitoba organizations that have one or more employees, including businesses, such as shops, restaurants and hotels, legal, healthcare, and other professional services. Non-profit organizations, including charities, unions, places of worship, and member associations must also comply with this law.

The Manitoba government had to comply by November 2016 and public sector organizations – such as universities, colleges, health authorities, Crown corporations, large municipalities and school divisions had until November 2017 to comply.

Meeting the Eight Requirements

The Standard is comprised of eight requirements:

• Requirement 1: Communicate in a way that best meets your customers’ needs.

• Requirement 2: Accommodate assistive devices.

• Requirement 3: Welcome support persons.

• Requirement 4: Allow service animals in public spaces.

• Requirement 5: Maintain accessibility features.

• Requirement 6: Inform the public when accessibility features are unavailable.

• Requirement 7: Welcome feedback on accessibility.

• Requirement 8: Complete accessibility training.

This section covers each of the eight requirements and actions that organizations and their employees must take to meet them.

Requirement 1: Communication

Requirement one states that organizations and their employees must communicate in a way that best meets the needs of their customers.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

We all have different communication needs. The key to meeting this requirement is understanding what your customers’ needs are and doing your best to meet them.

1. Treat all customers with respect. A friendly smile is a great start.

2. Give customers the opportunity to tell you what they need, including how they wish to communicate.

3. Speak directly to the person and maintain eye contact, rather than speaking to a companion, aide or an interpreter.

4. Print documents in clear, easy-to-read fonts, with lots of colour contrast, including menus, forms and signs.

Requirement 2: Assistive Devices

Requirement two states that organizations and their employees must accommodate assistive devices used by their customers.

What is an assistive device?

Assistive devices, like canes or hearing aids, help people with disabilities complete everyday tasks and create access to goods and services. When a person who is blind or hard of hearing uses a cell phone to communicate, especially during an appointment, the phone becomes an assistive device.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

1. Avoid moving assistive devices out of a customer’s reach.

2. Ask for permission before touching assistive devices, if necessary.

3. Let customers know if you offer any assistive devices. For example, some organizations offer wheelchairs. Others have accessibility features at a self-serve checkout.

4. Become familiar with any assistive devices available for customers and be prepared to use or explain them, as required by Requirement 8, Accessibility Training.

Requirement 3: Support Persons

Requirement three states that organizations and their employees must welcome support persons who are assisting customers and allow them to remain together. If you need to charge admission for the support person, provide advance notice.

What is a support person?

A support person assists with mobility, personal care, medical needs or with specific tasks like banking. A support person can be a paid personal support worker (PSW), a volunteer, a family member, or a friend. PSWs are trained professionals. Family or friends usually do not have formal training, but they often have years of experience. Many people have paid and unpaid support. For instance, a person may have a PSW present at their workplace and then go out in the evening with their partner acting as a support person.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

1. Speak directly to your customer or service recipient and do not assume they cannot understand. Most people prefer to make their own decisions about what to buy or how a service may affect them.

2. If the nature of your conversation or service is private, ask your client whether to include the support person. Check with your client on whether he/she prefers to discuss a decision first with the support person.

3. Invite the support person to take notes if this is helpful for your client’s understanding of important information or instructions, for instance, at medical appointments.

4. Avoid charging entrance admission or other fees for a support person, if possible.

5. The standard requires that, if you need to charge admission for the support person, provide advance notice, for example, by advertising this charge on your website or entrance fee billboard.

Requirement 4: Service Animals

Requirement four states that organizations and their employees must allow service animals in the public areas of the premises.

What is a service animal?

Service animals are working animals that are trained to meet the needs of their handlers with a disability.

How do you know if an animal is a service animal?

A service animal might wear a harness or vest. Many, but not all handlers carry documentation, such as a letter from a health professional or service animal trainer, which states that they require the animal because of a disability-related need.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

1. Focus on your customer. A service animal should not be touched or distracted.

2. The service animal must be under control at all times. If the customer is not controlling the service animal, you may offer a warning and eventually ask them to leave.

3. Consider including the statement “service animals are welcome, but pets are not allowed” in your registration information, event details, or business/organization information. The Manitoba Accessibility Office can provide you with an image for individual use, and/or an adhesive decal for windows (see below). This message also alerts people with allergies to come up with solutions, if necessary, in advance of arrival.

4. Not sure if an animal is a service animal? Here are some tips:

   • You can ask: “Has this animal been trained to help with a disability-related need?

   • Consider asking for documentation only when it is not obvious that the animal is providing a service.

The Manitoba Accessibility Office's "Service Animals Welcome" Decals

1. Small Service Animals Welcome Decal (PDF)

2. Large Service Animals Welcome Decal (PDF)

Requirement 5: Accessibility Features

Requirement five states that organizations and their employees must maintain accessibility features so they can be used as intended. Examples of accessibility features include ramps, wide aisles, accessible washrooms, power doors and elevators.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

1. Keep entryways and aisles clear of clutter.

2. Organize your space to make room for customers using assistive devices like wheelchairs or walkers.

3. Ensure indoor surfaces are clean and that outdoor spaces, including ramps, are clear of snow and ice for easy passage and safety.

Manitoba Voices: Frances Sinclair-Kaspick

Frances Sinclair-Kaspick is a member of the Peguis First Nation in Manitoba. She volunteers with the North End Women’s Centre Drum Group, the Aboriginal Disabled Self-Help Group, and is a contributor to an accessibility act for First Nations people. Frances is an inspirational speaker, an actor and a writer, and recently self-published her memoir “The Mountain Within.”

Requirement 6: Inform the Public About Accessibility Features

Requirement six states that organizations and their employees must inform the public when accessibility features are unavailable, why, and for how long. Organizations should provide alternative service options in the meantime.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

1. Notify customers if an accessibility feature such as an elevator or automatic door button is temporarily out of service. Post information online, display update signage and alert customers when they call.

2. Post basic information with contact information for more details. Include how long the feature is expected to be unavailable and how to access other options.

Requirement 7: Welcome Feedback

Requirement seven states that organizations and their employees must welcome feedback on the accessibility of an organization’s goods and services and document the resulting actions. Organizations must share this information with members of the public, upon request.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

1. Ask customers with disabilities about their experience(s) and use the feedback to learn how to meet the accessibility needs of the people you serve.

2. Allow customers to provide feedback in various ways. For example, online feedback forms may work for some customers, but others may prefer to speak to someone.

3. Respond to customers’ requests in a reasonable timeframe. For instance, confirm you have received the customers’ feedback and tell them when they can expect a response.

4. Inform all employees about your organization’s feedback process, and integrate accessibility feedback into a broader feedback policy.

Requirement 8: Accessibility Training

Requirement eight states that organizations must ensure employees complete accessibility training as soon as possible and when there have been updates to the organization’s accessibility measures, policies or practices.

Training must address the requirements of the Accessibility Standard for Customer Service, as included in this online learning program, a review of The Accessibility for Manitobans Act and the Manitoba Human Rights Code, and related organizational policies and practices.

Employees must also be trained on how to use assistive devices that are available for customer use.

What can you do to meet this requirement?

1. Require all employees, including owners, managers, and frontline staff to take customer service training, such as this online module. As a group, discuss how the training relates to the customer service practices of your organization. For help getting the discussion started, see the Accessible Customer Service Facilitator’s Guide (PDF) (Word).

2. Encourage questions and feedback. Create a safe and inviting environment to share concerns about accessibility.

3. Centre the perspectives and advice of people with disabilities in your training. Personal stories that relate to accessibility in a person’s own life can be valuable. Remember, nearly one in four Manitobans has a disability, and others will age into disability, so everyone is affected.

4. If you have assistive devices or other accessibility features available for customers, ensure that your employees are familiar with using them and explaining how to use the tools. For example, providing customers with clear and simple instructions on how to access the settings on a computer, or a mobility device.

5. Have a plan to train new staff and volunteers about customer service. Include this online learning module as a part of your training plan for staff and volunteers. Organizations with over 50 staff must write down their training plan.

Additional Requirements

Large employers (organizations with 50 or more employees) must write down their accessibility policies and share them with the public, upon request.

Although this is a legal requirement for large organizations, organizations of all sizes can benefit from documenting their policies as a way of ensuring employees know the expectations going forward, or know where to look for a reminder.

Visit AccessibilityMB.ca, where you will find an employer handbook, policy template and other resources to support the Accessibility Standard for Customer Service.

Larger public sector organizations must make public events accessible, including meetings, hearings and consultations. Affected organizations include the Manitoba government, universities and colleges, school divisions, Crown corporations, regional health authorities and Manitoba’s 10 largest municipalities (Brandon, Dauphin, Flin Flon, Morden, Portage la Prairie, Selkirk, Steinbach, Thompson, Winkler and Winnipeg).