General

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RADIO 1540 LIMITED (CHIN RADIO) published its Accessibility Plan (“Plan”), with the objective of breaking down barriers to become a more accessible broadcaster and employer. We developed our Plan to reflect section 6 of the Accessible Canada Act, and the inherent right to dignity of every individual.

 

We strive to create an environment and accessibility plan that is meaningful and impactful in removing barriers to create a more accessible world for our listeners, employees, and clients.

 

We received feedback during our consultations with individuals, including individuals with disabilities, into action points under our Plan, in areas applicable to our operations:

1. employment;

2. our built environment;

3. information communication technologies;

4. communication;

5. procurement of goods, services, and facilities;

6. the design and delivery of programs and services.

 

Throughout the sections below, we discuss the progress we have made in the implementation of our Plan, and the steps we will be taking in the future as we work toward our objectives

 

Definitions

Disability, barrier, and accessibility have the following meanings in this Progress Report:

• Disability: any impairment, including a physical, mental, intellectual, cognitive, learning, communication, or sensory impairment – or a functional limitation – whether permanent, temporary or episodic in nature, or evident or not, that, in interaction with a barrier, hinders a person’s full and equal participation in society.

• Barrier: anything – including anything physical, architectural, technological, or attitudinal, anything that is based on information or communications or anything that is the result of a policy or practice – that hinders the full and equal participation in society of persons with an impairment, including a physical, mental, intellectual, cognitive, learning, communication or sensory impairment or a functional limitation.

• Accessibility: The adaptation of physical spaces, technology, products, services, policies, programs, and attitudes to permit all individuals, including those with disabilities, to engage fully with the world around them without limitations.

 

 

Feedback

The public may communicate with our organization, or if they wish to receive feedback from us by contacting:

 

Emma Payne, Office Manager, 416-531-9991 ext 2430;  accessibility@chinradio.com

 

Mailing/In Person Address: 622 College Street, 5th Floor;  Toronto Ontario M6G 1B6

 

You may also contact CHIN Radio by reaching out to:

Theresa Lombardi, VP Operations, 416-531-9991 ext 2390; accessibility@chinradio.com

Mailing/In Person Address: 622 College Street, 5th Floor, Toronto Ontario M6G 1B6

 

The public may submit feedback about barriers they have encountered when dealing with our organization;  submit their feedback on our organization’s implementation of its accessibility plan;  request copies of our accessibility plans, progress reports, and feedback process in alternate formats, such as print format; large print format (increased font size); braille; audio format; and an electronic format compatible with adaptive technology.

 

When providing feedback, you can let us know who you are, or you can remain anonymous. If you want to remain anonymous, please do not include any information that might identify you, such as your name or return mailing address. If your email address includes your name or other identifying information, and you want to remain anonymous, you should submit feedback using one of the other methods listed above.

 

 

CHIN RADIO will provide on this website/accessibility tab, the following information by the appropriate dates indicated:

• As of June 1, 2025, we have provided training to all existing and new employees about disabilities and accessibility and created a policy for providing this training during onboarding (integrating new employees into our organization);

• by December 1, 2025, our organization will evaluate the previous training provided and determine whether any additional training or educational activities should be implemented;

• by December 1, 2025, conduct a survey of employees concerning accessibility and barriers to accessibility to evaluate our previous efforts at removing barriers to determine further steps to be taken; and

• In the new year 2026, and before June 1, 2026, incorporate the results of our employee survey into our next accessibility progress report.

 

The BUILT Environment

CHIN RADIO wants to remove barriers in our physical spaces for people with disabilities. We currently lease or own office and studio space in buildings that are handicapped accessible.

 

Physical spaces for employees with disabilities are available with enhancements such larger monitors, ergonomic chairs, easy access to filing cabinets, etc.

We assess every major renovation we complete from an accessibility framework so that any work removes, rather than creates, barriers and make the relevant physical spaces more accessible for people with disabilities where possible.

 

We have begun an assessment of all our current spaces to identify barriers and improve their accessibility where physically possible. 

 

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)

CHIN RADIO uses information and communication technologies to create a more accessible workspace and provide more accessible services. CHIN wants to remove barriers and prevent the creation of new barriers in the information and communication technologies that we use.  We provide operating and document processing software with accessibility features, including voice-to-text capabilities. We provide telephones with hands-free capabilities. We provide larger computer monitors when required. We permit virtual meetings where possible.

 

To meet our objectives in removing further barriers in our information and communication technologies:

• we currently assess our existing information and communication technologies for accessibility and identify any barriers, or gaps in accessibility as against new developments in information and communication technologies;

• Added additional supports in our information and communication technologies to remove any previously identified barriers and accessibility gaps; and

• We have conducted an employee survey to identify any further barriers or gaps in accessibility in our information and communication technologies.

 

Consultations

In preparation of this Progress Report, CHIN RADIO invited employees, including employees with disabilities, to participate in a small virtual focus group to discuss the continued development of our Plan, and its implementation to date. The focus group discussed action points under the plan, initiatives completed, perspectives on whether the plan was achieving its objectives on removing barriers, and further actions that could be considered for inclusion in the Plan, and in the implementation of the current steps already identified in the Plan.

 

With feedback received by staff and generally, we considered perspectives, suggestions, and comments which were informative and insightful, and have provided perspectives on hiring and training practices, and workplace processes to increase accessibility for our employees and visitors/clients with disabilities.

 

Our Progress in Areas under Section 5 of the Accessible Canada Act

Employment

We created action points under our Plan to remove barriers that: may prevent individuals from applying to work for us because they have a disability; and to support career advancement and self-fulfillment for current and future employees with disabilities.

In the past year, we:

• requested all our Health and Safety committees to assess health and safety through an accessibility lens at their monthly meetings.

• Evaluated our job postings and implemented new formatting and content requirements to make them more accessible for individuals applying to work with us.

• Developed a policy concerning accommodation specific to our employee onboarding process.

At this time, we are in the process of developing an inclusive hiring practice training model for our hiring managers;

 

Eventually, within the next year, we will provide training to all employees about disability and accessibility, evaluate all accessibility training provided under our Plan, and conduct an employee survey about accessibility and barriers to accessibility at our workplaces. Continually evaluating the training provided will help us to identify gaps in our accessibility and disability workplace training methodologies and further remove barriers to accessibility.

 

Information and Communication Technologies

Under our Plan we are reviewing our information and communication technologies to continue to remove barriers to provide a more accessible workspace and more accessible services. During the past year we have reviewed existing accessibility features available in our document processing software and are learning about new accessibility application technologies. Further to our Consultations, we will be circulating an information guide to our employees about the accessibility features available in our document processing software.

As we move forward with the implementation of our Plan, we will review further supports in developing information and communication technologies that we can incorporate in our workspaces and in our provision of services as a broadcaster, to breakdown barriers and increase accessibility in those workspaces and services.

 

Communication (other than ICT)

CHIN RADIO plans to become more accessible in our communications, including those related to the design and delivery of our programs and services, and employment/employment equity. Our progress in becoming more accessible in our communications to remove barriers in the areas of our built environments, and our procurement of goods, services, and facilities, are discussed in those sections.

This year, we updated our websites to provide individuals with a specific feedback form where they could let us know if they experienced accessibility barriers when using our websites or suggest ways to make our websites more accessible. While we have not yet received any accessibility feedback through this form to date, we have received informative comments on website accessibility issues through our Consultations. We are also considering alternative ways to obtain feedback from the public on the usability of our websites for individuals with disabilities to make them more accessible in the delivery of our services.

 

As we continue to evaluate our website accessibility, we will move forward with our upcoming action points in relation to removing non-ICT communication barriers by: introducing guidelines and provide training on publishing our digital content in clear, easy to understand, language; providing disability and accessibility training for promotions staff when dealing with the public; and developing a digital media accessibility policy to incorporate guidelines on Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, accessible fonts, and accessible formats.

 

Procurement of Goods, Services, and Facilities

As we continue to implement our Plan, we will be creating a resource reserve for any new accessibility developments in the types of goods, services, and facilities that we procure, i.e. office supplies, furniture, technical equipment, etc.

 

Design and Delivery of Programs and Services

As our programs and services involve communications, our progress in this area is outlined under the communication (other than ICT) section of this Progress Report.

 

Transportation

CHIN RADIO does not provide transportation services, and this section is not applicable to our Progress Report.

 

Areas under Section 42(1) of the Accessible Canada Act

Conditions of Licence issued under Part II of the Broadcasting Act related to the Identification and Removal of Barriers and the Prevention of new Barriers.

While none of our stations have conditions of licence related to the identification and removal of barriers, our stations do consider employment equity and increasing accessibility;

 

Provisions of any Order made under subsection 9 (4) of the Broadcasting Act related to the Identification and Removal of Barriers and the Prevention of new Barriers.

As there are no orders applicable to CHIN RADIO under subsection 9(4) of the Broadcasting Act related to the identification and removal of barriers, this section is not applicable to this Progress Report.

 

Provisions of any Regulations made under subsection 10(1) of the Broadcasting Act related to the Identification and Removal of Barriers and the Prevention of new Barriers.

To the extent that there are any regulations made under subsection 10(1) of the Broadcasting Act related to the implementation of our Plan, they are covered in the other sections of this Progress Report