ACCESSIBILITY LINKS
Guest Services Accessibility Policy
The following policies have been established as part of The TDL Group Corp.s' commitment to accessibility and consideration of our obligations under the Ontario Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, and that while the policies apply specifically in respect to our operations in Ontario, we are committed to and apply the same principles contained in these policies to our operations across Canada.
STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT
In fulfilling our mission, Tim Hortons strives at all times to provide its goods and services in a way that respects dignity, independence, integration and equality of opportunity to all guests, including people with disabilities, in order for them to obtain, use or benefit from the goods or services we provide.
REQUIREMENTS
This policy applies to all employees of The TDL Group Corp. and its subsidiaries and affiliates (together, "Tim Hortons”).
Disability means:
- Any degree of physical infirmity, malformation or disfigurement that is caused by bodily injury, birth defect or illness and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, includes diabetes mellitus, epilepsy, a brain injury, any degree of paralysis, amputation, lack of physical coordination, blindness or visual impairment, deafness or hearing impediment, muteness or speech impediment, or physical reliance on a guide dog, or other animal or on a wheelchair or other remedial appliance or device,
- A condition of mental impairment or a developmental disability,
- A learning disability, or a dysfunction in one or more of the processes involved in understanding or using symbols or spoken language,
- A mental disorder, or
- An injury or disability for which benefits were claimed or received under the insurance plan established under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997 (“handicap”).
Providing goods and services to people with disabilities and whereby Tim Hortons is committed to excellence in serving all guests including people with disabilities. Tim Hortons will carry out our duties and responsibilities in the following areas:
Use of Guide Dogs & Service Animals
We are committed to welcoming people with disabilities who are accompanied by a guide dog or other service animal on the parts of our premises that are open to the public and other third parties. The individual is permitted to keep the animal with him or her unless excluded by law. Where a guide dog or service animal is excluded by law, we will ensure that other measures are available. Service animals shall be under the care and control of the individual at all times. We will ensure that all team members, volunteers and others dealing with the public are properly trained on how to interact with people with disabilities who are accompanied by a guide dog or service animal.
Support Persons
We are committed to welcoming people with disabilities who are accompanied by a support person. Any person with a disability who is accompanied by a support person will be allowed to enter Tim Hortons premises with his or her support person. At no time will a person with a disability who is accompanied by a support person be prevented from having access to his or her support person while on our premises.
Use of Assistive Devices
Tim Hortons welcomes the use of assistive devices by persons with disabilities to obtain, use or benefit from the organization's goods or services or the availability, if any, of other measures which enable them to do so.
Accessibility Training
Tim Hortons will continue to make best efforts to ensure that every person who deals with the public, including third parties and all those who are involved in the development and approval of guest service policies, practices and procedures are trained on the provision of goods and services to persons with disabilities. The training will include, but is not limited to the following information:
- Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005
- 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 service animal or support person,
- How to use equipment made available by Tim Hortons to help people with disabilities to access goods and services, and
- What to do if a person with a disability is having difficulty accessing Tim Hortons' goods and services.
Training will continue to be provided to each person according to his or her needs and duties and as soon as possible after he or she is assigned to the applicable duties. Training is provided on an ongoing basis in connection with changes to policies, practices and procedures governing the provision of goods or services to persons with disabilities. A record of the dates on which training is provided and the names of the individuals to whom it is provided will be kept.
Information & Communication
Tim Hortons is committed to communicating with people with disabilities in a manner that takes into account the individual's disability. Upon request, we will provide any information made to the public, in accessible alternative formats or with communication support.
Notice of Availability of Documents
Tim Hortons will provide the public with the documents relating to the Accessibility Standards for Guest Services upon request. Notice of the accessibility to the documents is provided on the Tim Hortons website and/or through other printed methods.
Format of Documents
Where Tim Hortons is required by legislation, to provide a copy of a public document to a person with a disability, the company takes into account the person's ability to access the information and provides the public document or information contained in the public document in a format that meets those needs as agreed upon with the person.
Accessible Guest Feedback Process
Tim Hortons has an extensive process designed to facilitate the collection and response to all guest feedback, including feedback regarding the provision of goods and services to people with disabilities. Tim Hortons strives to provide a hospitable and welcoming overall experience that reflects how much guests are truly appreciated.
This procedure applies to all employees, volunteers as well as anyone dealing with the public or other third parties on behalf of Tim Hortons in Ontario.
Methods of Providing Feedback:
The following methods of providing feedback to Tim Hortons on the provisions of goods and service to people with disabilities are available:
- Website - via the website email feedback form at www.timhortons.ca under "Contact Us"
- Telephone- Tim Hortons Head Office Guest Services Department:
1-888-601-1616
Hours:
Monday to Thursday 8:00am- Midnight EST and
Friday 8:00am to 5pm specific to each time zone.
Voicemail is available on Saturday, Sunday and after hours.
Messages left will be returned the following business day.
Response to Feedback
At Tim Hortons, every guest that provides feedback receives a response. The Guest Services department at Tim Hortons is dedicated to responding to all inquiries, regardless of method, as quickly as possible. A Guest Services Representative will contact each guest in the method which they have requested to be contacted. All guest feedback is logged and tracked to ensure quality response and resolution, including the actions that were or will be taken.
Confidentiality
Tim Hortons will not disclose personal information for purposes other than those required to address feedback and inquiries related to accessible guest services.
Notice of Temporary Service Disruption
During a temporary disruption to the availability of Tim Hortons facilities and/or services, we will notify our guests of the reason for the disruption and its anticipated duration. To ensure effective dissemination of this information notices will be posted at public entrances as soon as practicable. If alternate locations are available during the disruption, we will also include this information on public notices. The Restaurant Manager or Owner is responsible for posting the notice as soon as practicable.
Temporary service disruptions may result due to many different situations. The following is a list of some common circumstances that may result in a service disruption. This list is not exhaustive:
- Washroom Closure
- Restaurant Renovations
- Automatic Door Malfunction
- Nearby Construction
- Power Failure
- Renovations
This procedure applies to all employees, volunteers as well as anyone dealing with the public or other third parties on behalf of Tim Hortons in Ontario.
Integrated Accessibility Standard Policies
Policy Statement and Organizational Commitment
Tim Hortons is committed and guided by the four (4) core principles of Dignity, Independence, Integration and Equal Opportunity and supports the full inclusion of persons as set out in Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005.
Tim Hortons shall use every effort to ensure that we meet the needs of people with disabilities, in a timely manner, through the implementation of this policy and accessibility plan.
Information and Communication Standards
Tim Hortons will continue to create, provide and receive information and communications in ways that are accessible to people with disabilities.
If Tim Hortons determines that it is not technically feasible to convert the information or communications or that the technology to convert the information or communications is not readily available, we will be obligated to provide the person that requires the information with an explanation as to why the information or communications are unconvertible; and a summary of the unconvertible information or communications.
Accessible Emergency Information
If Tim Hortons prepares emergency procedures, plans or public safety information and makes the information available to the public, we shall provide the information in an accessible format or with appropriate communication supports, as soon as practicable, upon request.
Feedback, Accessible Formats and Communication Supports
Tim Hortons has a policy and process in place for receiving and responding to feedback and will ensure that those processes are provided in accessible formats and with communication supports upon request.
In addition, in accordance with the IASR, Tim Hortons will continue to provide or arrange for accessible formats and communication supports for persons with disabilities:
- Upon request in a timely manner that takes into account the persons’ accessibility needs due to a disability;
- At a cost that is no more than the regular cost charged to other persons;
Consult with the person making the request and determine suitability of an accessible format or communication support
Accessible Formats and Communication Supports
Upon request, Tim Hortons will consult with a team member with a disability to provide or arrange for the provision of accessible formats and communication supports as outlined below:
- Information that is needed in order to perform the team member’s job;
- Information that is generally available to team members in the workplace; and
- Consult with the team member making the request in determining the suitability of an accessible format or communication support.
Website Accessibility
Tim Hortons is committed to making its website usable by all people, including those with disabilities, by meeting or exceeding the requirements of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 Level A/AA (WCAG 2.1 A/AA).We strive to make our site an equal experience for everyone.
We continue to monitor our site to help ensure that all content provided is accessible to all visitors. In order to help us in this process, we have engaged The Bureau of Internet Accessibility, an accessibility consulting company, to conduct a full accessibility audit consisting of both automated and manual testing of our website using BoIA’s A11Y® platform which provides us with specific recommendations that will assist us in ensuring that our Web presence is in conformance with the WCAG 2.0 A/AA.
Our Commitment to Help
We are dedicated to meeting all of your accessibility needs and recognizes the importance of providing accessible formats and communications supports. Should you have specific questions or concerns about the accessibility of this site or would like us to provide you with accessible formats and communication supports, we have trained individuals here at Tim Hortons to assist you.
Please contact us at 1-888-601-1616 or on our website email feedback form under “Contact us” and be sure to specify the web page you need assistance with so that we can look into making that page accessible for you. We greatly value your questions and comments.
Third Party Applications
While you are visiting our site, you will notice that we make use of third-party sites such as Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Google Maps to provide information about Tim Hortons. Though individuals may have challenges with access to these particular sites, Tim Hortons does not control (and therefore cannot remedy) the way content from such sites is displayed.
Employment Standard
Tim Hortons is committed to fair and accessible employment practices. The Employment Standard builds upon the existing requirements under the Ontario Human Rights Code in relation to how accessibility throughout the entire employment cycle is provided. It applies to team members and does not apply to volunteers and other non-paid individuals.
Recruitment
Tim Hortons shall take the following steps to notify team members and the public about the availability of accommodations for applicants with disabilities as follows:
- During the recruitment process when job applicants are individually selected to participate in an assessment or selection process;
- If a selected applicant requests an accommodation, Tim Hortons shall consult with the applicant and provide or arrange for the provision of a suitable accommodation that takes into account the applicant’s disability;
- Notify successful applicants of the policies for accommodating team members with disabilities.
Team Member Notification
- Tim Hortons shall inform its team members of its policies used to support its team members with disabilities, including but not limited to, policies on the provision of job accommodations that take into account a team member’s accessibility needs due to a disability as follows:
- As required to new team members as soon as practicable after they begin their employment;
- Whenever there is a change to existing policies on the provision of job accommodations that take into account a team member’s accessibility needs due to a disability.
Individual Accommodation Plan (IAP) and Return to Work
Tim Hortons will continue to take the following steps to develop and put in place a process for developing documented Individual Accommodation Plans and return to work plans and processes for team members that have been absent due to a disability:
Develop an IAP that includes the following:
The team member’s participation in the development of the IAP;
- Assessment on an individual basis;
- Identification of accommodations to be provided;
- Timelines for the provision of accommodations;
- Tim Hortons may request an evaluation by outside medical or other expert, at our expense, to assist with determining accommodation and how to achieve accommodation;
- Team members may request the participation of a representative from their bargaining agent, where represented, or otherwise a representative from the workplace not a from a bargaining agent;
- Steps taken to protect the privacy of the team member’s personal information;
- Frequency with which the IAP will be reviewed and updated and the manner in which it will be done;
- If denied, the reasons for denial are to be provided to the team member;
- A format that takes into account the team member’s disability needs;
- If requested, any information regarding accessible formats and communication supports provided;
- Identification of any other accommodation that is to be provided.
Performance Management, Career Development and Advancement and Redeployment
Tim Hortons will continue to take into account the accommodation needs and/or Individual Accommodation Plans of team members when:
- Using performance management processes;
- Providing career development and advancement information;
- Using redeployment procedures.
In accordance with the IASR, Tim Hortons will take the following steps to ensure that the accessibility needs of team members with disabilities are taken into account if we are using performance management, career development and redeployment processes:
- Review internal policies and procedures to ensure they are in compliance with the IASR;
- Take into account the accessibility needs of team members with disabilities and, as applicable, their Individualized Accommodation Plans when:
- Assessing performance
- Managing career development and advancement, including notification of the ability to provide accommodations on internal job postings
- Redeployment is required
Workplace Emergency Response Information
Tim Hortons shall provide individualized workplace emergency response information to team members who have a disability for the four points below:
- If the disability is such that the individualized information is necessary and the employer is aware of the need for accommodation due to the team member’s disability;
- If the team member who receives an individual workplace emergency response information requires assistance and with the team member’s consent, Tim Hortons shall provide the workplace emergency information to the person designated by Tim Hortons to provide assistance to the team member;
- As soon as practicable after becoming aware of the need for accommodation due to the team
- Member’s disability;
- Review the individualized workplace emergency response information when the team member moves to a different location in the organization, when overall accommodations needs or plans are reviewed and when the employer reviews its general emergency response policies.
Training
Tim Hortons will ensure that all employees, volunteers, individuals who participate in the development of Tim Hortons policies, and all other individuals who provide goods, services or facilities on behalf of Tim Hortons have been trained on the requirements of the Regulation and the Ontario Human Rights Code, as it pertains to people with disabilities. The training will be appropriate to the duties of the individual and will be provided as soon as practicable. If any changes are made to the General Accessibility Policy or the requirements, additional training will be provided. Tim Hortons will maintain a record of the dates when training was provided and the number of individuals to whom it was provided.
Public Spaces
Tim Hortons shall incorporate accessibility into public spaces on its premises that are newly constructed or redeveloped on and after January 1, 2017 as follows:
We will ensure that we follow the existing requirements stated under the Design of Public Spaces standards (Accessibility Standards for the Built Environment) for outdoor public use eating areas, outdoor play spaces, exterior paths of travel, accessible parking, and service-related elements.
We shall also continue to provide maintenance and restoration of public spaces by ensuring procedures are in place for preventative and emergency maintenance of accessible elements in public spaces and that procedures are in place for dealing with temporary disruptions when accessible elements required under this section are not in working order.
Accessibility Plan
Tim Hortons has developed and will continue to maintain a Multi-Year Accessibility Plan outlining the Company’s strategy to prevent and remove barriers from its workplace and improve opportunities for persons with disabilities. This plan will be reviewed and updated at least once every five years.
The requirements of the Regulation include the following four items:
- Establishment, implementation, maintenance and documentation of a multi-year accessibility plan, which outlines the organization’s strategy to prevent and remove barriers and meet its requirements under the Regulation;
- Incorporation of accessibility criteria and features when procuring or acquiring goods, services, or facilities;
- Training; and
- Other specific requirements under the Information and Communications, Employment transportation Standards and Public Spaces.