This Accessibility Plan describes the steps ISM is taking to identify, remove and prevent barriers to accessibility in respect of the following seven areas: 

• employment; 
• the built environment; 
• information and communication technologies (ICT); 
• communication, other than ICT; 
• the procurement of goods, services and facilities; 
• the design and delivery of programs and services; and 
• transportation 

In order to request this Accessibility Plan in an alternate format, to request the description of our feedback process in an alternate format or to provide feedback to ISM, please contact Kirk Stephenson, Manager of Audit and Compliance by any of the following means:

Contact us directly through our website by clicking here.

By mail:
ISM - a Kyndryl company
200 - 1 Research Drive
Regina, Saskatchewan
S4S 7H1

By phone:
306 781 8488 / Toll-free 844 866 8488 

By email:
accessibility@kyndryl.com 

Priority area: Employment

We will work to increase representation across occupational groups and levels by identifying barriers and improving conditions for success, such as prompt accommodations and effective onboarding, retention and career development for persons with disabilities.

Current practices

• Policies aimed at increasing accessibility:
• Alternative Workplace Arrangements Policy for working from home
• Respectful Workplace Policy  
• Health & Safety Policy
• Working Alone or In Isolation Policy
• The Collective Bargaining Agreements for the Unions include clauses concerning fair practices in hiring, not only for designated groups but also for all employees.  This language governs how recruitment, selection and hiring processes are conducted for unionized workers
• Duty to Accommodate: ISM responds to all accommodation requests and evaluates each request. This includes requests for ergonomic assessments and equipment to ensure a barrier free workspace
• ISM has a Frank Talk Program which is a confidential method for employees to raise complaints or concerns. This program can be used to raise concerns related to barriers in the workplace
• ISM provides training opportunities with accessibility aids that accommodate employees who may require additional support by providing visual, hearing impairments and learning aids
• Recruitment Practices
• Job postings on ISM’s Career Page state that requests for reasonable accommodations in the recruitment process can be made by messaging us via our contact page.
• All candidates are assessed based solely on qualifications and merit. Job applicants are strongly encouraged not to provide any information that may be indicative of race, religion, colour, place of origin, ethnic origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, citizenship, marital status or physical disability, including photos, as part of the application process
• Notifications of job opportunities are made available to all staff via Microsoft Teams notification, online employee portal, and ISM website

Commitments

• Continue to review our existing policies in an effort to remove or mitigate barriers to accessibility (ongoing)
• Continue to review our existing practices in an effort to remove or mitigate barriers to accessibility (ongoing)
• ISM will continue to ensure that on/off site training is inclusive  
• Educate managers on accessibility and how they can provide barrier free hiring and provide accommodation to those who require it (to be developed in 2023-2024)
• Develop information, tools, and accommodations to improve onboarding for employees who require aid. (to be developed in 2024)
• Develop and implement a performance/data management strategy for capturing employee/accommodation information to identify and report on trends. (to be developed in 2024)
• ISM’s recruitment team will continue to research platforms to post job opportunities that are accessible to individuals with disabilities. (ongoing)
• Employee referrals will continue to be encouraged in ISM’s recruitment processes.  This has been a positive experience within our company, reaching people who may not otherwise be aware of our job opportunities. (ongoing)
• A review of all recruitment/onboarding materials will be performed and where necessary, an accessibility statement will be included. (to be completed in 2023; annually thereafter)
• ISM will use the results of Employment Equity Data & Reporting to identify barriers that may exist in our policies/practices for persons with disabilities. if barriers are identified, ISM will outline measures to remove or mitigate them (ongoing)

Priority area: The design and delivery of programs and services

ISM recognizes the needs of persons with disabilities and has incorporated these needs into our help desk services which serves a similar function as a traditional call centre, thus our clients should expect to receive accessible service support

Current practices  

• ISM provides our clients a variety of ways to reach our Service Desk, including telephone (toll-free), emails and self–service via ServiceNow application  

Commitments

• ISM will train Service Desk agents to provide accessible and barrier free customer service. Accessibility training modules will be embedded in our onboarding and continuous learning program with focus on emotional intelligence and communication (to be completed in 2024)

Priority area: The built environment

ISM’s built environment is obtained by its parent company. As such, ISM relies on its parent company to conform with Canadian legislation and ensure accessibility of the built environment  

Accessibility functions at our facilities are provided based on local building codes. Where local building codes don’t provide enough accessibility support, ISM works with our parent company Real Estate division to provide physical accessibility such as opener assist doors, ramps, and elevators. With respect to employees – our People and Culture team documents any specific employee requirements to accommodate a physically barrier free workplace

ISM assesses facilities during facility commissioning and renovations to ensure continued accessibility

Priority Area: Information and communication technologies (ICT)

ISM provides information and communications technology products, services and digital content that are usable by all, regardless of ability or disability. However, there is always room for improvement by continuing to identify barriers and acting to mitigate or eliminate the effects of any barriers to anyone affected by them.

Current communication practices

• Dayforce is used to communicate job availability and hiring status
• Microsoft Teams, including SharePoint, is used to communicate and share information with employees
• ISM’s website is used to communicate information about ISM, our products, services, company information, and links to our career portal (Dayforce)

ISM has developed the following plans to identify ICT accessibility issues and remove barriers

• Identify accessibility barriers in Dayforce and mitigate (TBD)
• Educate ISM staff on the technology available within Teams and SharePoint to eliminate Accessibility barriers.  Assistive technologies are available within Microsoft Teams and SharePoints, along with Accessibility checkers to validate inclusion.  ISM staff hosting meetings will be responsible for using these accessibility services when they are hosting a meeting which requires an increased level of accessibility (Dec.1, 2023)
• Identify accessibility gaps in the ISM website (Sept. 1, 2023) and remove these accessibility barriers on the ISM website (Apr. 1, 2024)
• Engage employees on the accessibility of information and communications tools and technology through surveys and consultations  
• _{People & Culture will work with Marketing to develop a survey to distribute to all employees to gain insight into any barriers that may exist for persons with disabilities, related to the tools and technology they use on a daily basis to perform their jobs (e.g. Microsoft Office Suite – Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive; Microsoft Teams; Cisco Jabber; Dayforce; etc.) (to be developed in 2024)}
• _{People & Culture will work with Marketing to develop a statement to include in all corporate communications to ensure employees are aware of the accessibility options available in the Microsoft Office Suite of tools (Dictate, transcribe, captions, etc) (to be developed in 2024)}
• _{People & Culture will work with Marketing to develop a statement to include in all external communications to ensure external parties (job applicants, partners, etc) are aware of the accommodation options available (to be developed in 2024)}

Priority area: Communication, other than ICT

Commitments related to this priority area under the Act are covered under ISM’s ICT priority area.

Priority area: The procurement of goods, services and facilities

ISM obtains goods and services from its parent company which uses electronic purchase orders and base agreements that align with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. ISM will work with its parent company to include the requirements of the ACA into these agreements .

ISM’s facilities are obtained by its parent company. As such, ISM relies on its parent company to ensure compliance with Canadian legislation and ensure accessibility of the built environment .

ISM provides tools such as screen readers, ergonomic workstations, bigger/brighter displays and workspace modifications to remove barriers and support employees.

Priority area: Transportation

In the context of the Accessible Canada Act, transportation refers to the federally regulated transportation network and only applies to entities that must comply under the Canada Transportation Act (CTA). This does not apply to ISM.

Consultations

ISM reviewed and considered all comments and submissions received through its accessibility feedback process in preparing this Accessibility Plan.

Principles

In preparing this Accessibility Plan, ISM has been guided by the following principles outlined in s. 6 of the Accessible Canada Act:

1. all persons must be treated with dignity regardless of their disabilities;
2. all persons must have the same opportunity to make for themselves the lives that they are able and wish to have regardless of their disabilities;
3. all persons must have barrier-free access to full and equal participation in society, regardless of their disabilities;
4. all persons must have meaningful options and be free to make their own choices, with support if they desire, regardless of their disabilities;  
5. laws, policies, programs, services and structures must take into account the disabilities of persons, the different ways that persons interact with their environments and the multiple and intersecting forms of marginalization and discrimination faced by persons;
6. persons with disabilities must be involved in the development and design of laws, policies, programs, services and structures; and
7. the development and revision of accessibility standards and the making of regulations must be done with the objective of achieving the highest level of accessibility for persons with disabilities.