What you need to know about AODA printing - Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA)

Are you ready for the January 1st deadline? Concerned about how to meet your AODA printing needs? We can help you quickly comply with AODA Accessibility Standards for Customer Service legislation and regulations.

The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) legislation carries stiff penalties for organizations that do not comply with requests for documentation in alternative formats. If you are one of the public sector organizations affected by the January 1, 2012 AODA deadline, you will want to know how to comply with the relevant legislation to avoid these sanctions.

There are several business operating documents and notices that need to be made available in alternate formats for AODA printing, such as Braille, Large-Print, audio CD and eText. Anyone can request documentation in these formats, including your customers, employees, business partners or associates.

AODA regulations cover a wide range of business documents, including (but not limited to):

  • Documentation that outline your company’s methods of doing business, including policies, procedures, practices
  • Employee or contractor training manuals
  • Employment interview guides or job qualification outlines
  • Informational needs related to your facilities
  • Service disruption notices and alternate plans
  • Your AODA plan
  • Your feedback methodology

Failure to provide alternative formats may result in a penalty of up to $50,000 per day (if you are a Director or Officer of the organization) and up to $100,000 a day for Corporations. These penalties apply if you provide misleading information in an accessibility report and/or fail to comply with an order.

Crawford Technologies can provide you with document accessibility services to produce either regular output or ad-hoc one-off documents in alternative formats to meet your AODA printing needs.


We produce output in the following Alternate Formats:

  • Braille
  • Large-Print
  • Audio CD
  • eText CD

We can also help you make resources available for download from your website for use with assistive technologies.

When it comes to the AODA Accessibility Standards for Customer Service, our three-step plan will ensure you are compliant and help you to avoid any penalties:

  1. Work with your staff to develop the content for these communications
  2. Convert them to any of the required alternate formats
  3. Produce and mail them to your required business locations

Resources:

We have compiled some useful resources, supplied by the Government of Ontario, to assist you in understanding AODA printing and compliance.
Links open in a new window and will take you to an external website.

Contact us now for a no-obligation discussion on how to comply with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA).

Crawford Technologies is a member of The American Council of the Blind, the American Foundation for the Blind and the Braille Authority of North America. CrawfordTech is a Board member of the Canadian Braille Authority.