At BIMM, we’re deeply committed to ensuring equal access and participation for all people with disabilities. We’re dedicated to treating everyone with dignity and respect, and in a way that helps people maintain independence. We fully support the Ontario government’s goal to make the province barrier-free for disabled people by 2025. BIMM strives to align with this initiative by providing accommodations, removing or preventing accessibility challenges, and adhering to Ontario law accessibility requirements. We offer a safe, dignified, and welcoming environment for everyone. As a company, BIMM is compliant with AODA (Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act) guidelines by incorporating accessibility legislation into our policies, procedures, training, and best practices. Creating an accessible environment is a shared effort and we work with all necessary parties to ensure accessibility for all. We understand that there is always room for growth and development, which is why our policies and practices are reviewed on a regular basis.

Employment
We welcome people with disabilities re: recruitment, employment, training, career development, and career progression.

Communication
We communicate with people with disabilities in ways that take into account their disability and provide accommodations. Our website—as well as the services we provide to client websites—continuously strive to meet the requirements of WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) 2.0 AA.

Assistive technology & aids
We strive to accommodate people with disabilities who use assistive devices in our spaces including hearing, visual, and mobility aids.

We welcome candidates who require aids—such as interpreters and support animals—and do our best to accommodate them.

Note: BIMM’s office is located in a historical building, making it challenging to outfit our space as fully accessible—specifically to those with mobility aids (e.g. wheelchair). We do, however, offer a hybrid work model, which can accommodate employees by way of virtual work.

Our work
BIMM takes pride in our client work, as we continuously strive to be up to WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) 2.0 AA standards.

Our teams conduct quarterly audits to find accessibility issues and we strive to fix them in a timely manner—utilizing various accessibility tools to find points of potential inaccessibility.

Our Design Research user testing has included individuals who regularly utilize accessibility aids for in-depth and functional feedback.

Our website
Our teams continuously conducts accessibility and QA checks

BIMM has created an accessibility plan that will be available online in 2024.

Staff training
All employees will:
– Complete AODA training
– Understand the purpose of AODA and requirements of the integrated standards
– Learn to interact and communicate with people with all types of disabilities, including those who use assistive devices or require the assistance of a service animal or a support person

Accommodations in the workspace
As we continue to grow our teams and learn more about various disabilities, accommodations in the workspace are provided on a case-by-case basis. We are committed to learning the best ways we can help employees with disabilities.

Regular reviews of accessibility and accommodations currently available
At BIMM, we will:
– Conduct annual risk assessments to identify areas of improvement and change for our long-term plan for accessibility.
– In-office: Yearly walkthroughs with teams, list areas of improvement, create budgets, and build more accessible space with our parent company. Review what can be implemented (e.g. Ramps, touchless washroom doors, sinks, etc.) Revisit and adjust plans as necessary.
– Enroll Health & Safety Committee Training for AODA members

Accessibility/empathy resources and/or training
At BIMM, we will provide growth opportunities for employees and external stakeholders through a variety of documentation, resources, lunch & learns/events, and general training.

For more information on BIMM’s Accessibility Policies & Plan or the availability of accessible formats please contact us by using our online form or email us directly at info@bimm.com. To review the full AODA website, visit https://aoda.ca/.