Alternate Formats

To request a copy of this Plan or the Accessibility Policy in an alternate format, including with communications supports, please reach out to us using the following contact options.

Manager, Administrative Support Services
TCIADMINTEAM@toyota.ca

Introduction

This multi-year Plan outlines Toyota Canada Inc. (TCI)’s commitment to compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) and to clearly document our actions and progress surrounding the identification, prevention, and removal of barriers within our organization.

This Plan is a snapshot which encompasses both our achievements and planned commitment to continue building our accessible future at Toyota.

Lived Experience Consultations

People with disabilities and lived experiences were consulted in the development of this Plan in the form of a Focus Group. Their thoughts, considerations and recommendations have been applied.

Accessibility Statement

Toyota Canada Inc. is proud to be more than an automotive company; we are a mobility company, innovating the movement of people. Accessibility is about striving for comprehensive, inclusive solutions that result in class-leading outcomes through our people, spaces, and technology. We believe in a world where mobility for all means something different than mobility for many. Toyota is committed to actively reimagining accessibility by addressing barriers and pursuing innovative, equitable solutions that impact change within our organization and beyond.

Our Achievements

We believe that no action is too small when it comes to shaping a more equitable and accessible future for our organization. Taking actionable steps towards this commitment is vital to our pursuit of an inclusive culture at TCI. Our teams have been dismantling barriers and are dedicated to establishing new groundwork for improved, meaningful access across for everyone when it comes to its goods, services, facilities, and opportunities.

At TCI our accessibility impacts are experienced across multiple touchpoints within our many lines of business. From our national management and administration of sales, distribution, marketing to technical support of Toyota and Toyota vehicle parts, the benefits of becoming more accessible are endless and help open the doors to greater opportunities. From our corporate and zone offices to parts and vehicle distribution centers, fostering inclusivity systematically strengthens connections within our organizational networks.

Since the publication of our previous Accessibility Plan, TCI has taken the following actions.

Training

Fostering Disability Awareness

Fostering disability awareness and creating an understanding of accessibility is essential to TCI’s core inclusive culture initiatives. Ensuring everyone who works with us has the same level of training or specified training based on their role is important to us. We look for opportunities to weave accessibility into the daily lives of our associates (employees) by incorporating it into popular events or holidays. For example, in 2022 and 2023 we executed a disability awareness campaign connected to Halloween. We partnered with Treat Accessibly, an organization that provides helpful tips for children and adults to better engage and participate more fully without barriers. As a result, our associates learned about the initiative, received training on how to decrease barriers, and felt inspired to champion accessibility into other areas of their lives.

At TCI, we invest in ongoing types of disability-awareness training so that our associates experience accessibility in a multi-faceted way that supports and contributes to our efforts to create an inclusive culture and customer service excellence.

Another achievement furthering our disability awareness efforts includes a wheelchair basketball event with Wheelchair Basketball Canada. In partnership with a local disability support organization, Variety Village, associates participated in a wheelchair basketball tournament. This exciting opportunity allowed our associates to learn directly from people with disabilities and build awareness of accessible athletics. This initiative aligns with Toyota’s broader mission as an official sponsor of the Paralympic Games.

Employment

ToyotAbility

TCI recognizes the significance of providing our associates with disabilities a safe and welcoming platform to share their perspectives, experiences, and insights. In 2022 we created our first disability-focused employee resource group ToyotAbility.

ToyotAbility, is an associate resource group focused on disability awareness and championing accessibility. ToyotAbility runs multiple events throughout the year, with guest speakers presenting on a variety of topics related to accessibility and disability and acts as the internal “accessibility” hub for all of our associates. We presently have over 100 members and counting. To help promote ToyotAbility, board members have added taglines to their internal email signatures with a link that allows everyone to learn more information and join.

Short-term Disability

Evolving our employee-centric policies and practices ensures that our associates are supported in the right way when they need it most. In 2023, we refreshed our short-term disability program to ensure our associates are protected in various health-related situations. Our new, simplified process provides coverage during periods of temporary disability to ensure that our associates can focus on their recovery. Associates have been educated on the process and are aware of the types of support and assistance they are entitled to. The revised short-term disability program also offers various types of accommodations for our associates upon return to work. This achievement is important to us as it reflects a commitment to employee well-being, financial needs, and a supportive work environment.

Design of Public Spaces

Creating accessible environments goes beyond ramps and elevators. At TCI, we are on a journey to support meaningful access to and throughout our offices, vehicle processing centres and parts distribution centres. As this presents challenges in some of our older facilities, we have teamed up with accessibility consultants over the past five years to assess, audit, and develop solutions that will allow us to continuously work towards creating welcoming environments that feel good to work in and inspire collaboration among our associates.

Some of our specific achievements for the built environment:

• We conducted a detailed accessibility assessment of our head office at 1 Toyota Place in Toronto Ontario,
• We conducted a series of assessments for Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certifications (RHFAC) for our offices across Canada, including:
  • Pacific regional office and West Coast Parts Distributions Centre in Richmond British Columbia,
  • Atlantic regional office in Dartmouth Nova Scotia,
  • Prairie regional office in Calgary Alberta,
  • Quebec regional office in Brassard, and
  • Montreal Vehicle Processing Centre.
• Our newest facility in Bowmanville Ontario, the Eastern Canada Parts Distribution Centre, has proudly become RHFAC™ Accessible Gold and hosts various enhanced accessible elements such as an accessible electric car-charging station, an accessible on-site recreational pathway, and accessible egress options in the event of an emergency including areas of refuge on the 2nd Floor, and
• We renovated our head office to create a fully-accessible entrance and modified our accessible washroom entrances with improved automatic door operators and the addition of an accessible stall.

Building our Accessible Future

At TCI we recognize the pivotal role Toyota plays as both an employer and a leading auto distributer. We believe we have the power to foster innovation and create change within the accessibility landscape and beyond. We want to continuously implement strategies and actions to dismantle barriers and enhance inclusion across our organization.

To build our accessible future, we are focused on bringing together our people, places and technology, to generate meaningful change across multiple divisions and departments.

Let’s explore some of the keyways we are planning to do this.

Training

To further enhance our comprehensive training programs for our associates we will:

• Pursue refreshed disability awareness and accessible customer service certification training to ensure our associates have the most up-to-date knowledge, skills, and tools to confidently champion accessibility.

Employment

To further strengthen our accessibility related initiatives for our associates we will:

• Develop a refreshed Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Strategy to formally guide our work within this space, including specific components related to accessibility,
• Develop a new Well-Being Program for associates, which will build a culture of wellbeing through a holistic approach that emphasizes the ‘whole’ individual incorporating proactive and preventative support in the pursuit of physical, emotional, mental, financial and social fulfillment.
• Incorporate an associate-specific component to our Social Contribution Strategy to ensure associates have opportunities to volunteer their time in support of TCI Foundation partners, TCI Business Partnering Groups, and other eligible organizations, including disability and accessibility related organizations, and
• Enhance our partnership with Toyota Motor North America (TMNA) to better leverage knowledge, resources and support related to accessibility.

Information and Communications

To further streamline our accessibility efforts across all forms of information and communication both internally and externally, we will:

• Review and restructure how accessibility is organized and governed within the organization overall. This includes connecting our people, places and technology, to clearly define how various internal departments come together to deliver on our organizational commitments in an accountable manner.

Built Environment and Design of Public Spaces

To further our continuous evolution towards an accessible built environment we will:

• Establish a plan to address barriers within the built environment for our Toronto head office,
• Conduct a review and plan to determine the best options to remove barriers at our TCI locations,
• Strive to achieve Rick Hansen Accessibility Gold Certifications for all newly-constructed facilities to demonstrate our commitment to go above and beyond minimum accessibility compliance requirements and work towards meaningful access for everyone, and
• Update our Dealer Standards Guidelines with an accessibility lens, that offers helpful tips, recommendations, and best practices to support dealerships in improving, maintaining, and contributing to barrier-free environments, wherever possible.

Emergency Procedures and Maintenance

TCI is committed to ensuring preventative and emergency maintenance of accessible facilities, including but not limited to those for public use. We also have procedures in place for dealing with temporary disruptions to accessible facilities when they are not in working order, which can be referred to in our Accessibility Policy.

Feedback

Feedback, including comments or considerations from those with lived experience, is highly valuable to us at TCI. We welcome feedback on this Plan, our Accessibility Policy, or any other accessibility-related questions or concerns, including accessible customer service-related matters.

To provide feedback or to request a copy of our Policy or Plan in an alternate format, including with communications supports, please use the following contact options. We strive to provide a response within seven business days.

Addressed to: Manager, Administrative Support Services
Email: TCIADMINTEAM@toyota.ca
Phone number 416-431-8085
Mailing address 1 Toyota Place, Toronto, ON M1H 1H9

Revision Date: February 9, 2024