The Task Force on Community Access and Equity has not completed its mandate but is no longer active. The following information is provided for archival purposes.

The Task Force on Community Access and Equity was absorbed by the Roundtable on Access, Equity and Human Rights.

Draft Report
Diversity Our Strength
Access and Equity Our Goal

Community Advisory Committees

1. That City Council replace the current access, equity and human rights community advisory committees of the former municipalities with the following 7 community advisory committees to address the priorities faced by the human rights protected groups:
   • Aboriginal Affairs Committee
   • Disability Issues Committee
   • Status of Women Committee
   • Racial Minorities Committee
   • Ethnocultural and Faith Issues Committee
   • Immigrant and Refugee Issues Committee
   • Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgendered Issues.
2. That the community advisory committees identified above provide advice to City Council, its agencies, boards and commissions, and act as an advocate to external bodies on barriers to participation in public life and to the achievement of social, cultural and economic well-being.
3. That the composition and selection of the members of the community advisory committees include: individuals, individuals who work in community agencies serving the human rights protected groups, individuals with technical expertise, and that there be representation from all the regions of the City, and that the total membership reflect the diversity of the City's population.
4. That the community advisory committees on access, equity and human rights report to Council through the appropriate Standing Committees on issues within the mandate of the Standing Committees; and to the Strategic Policies and Priorities Committees for issues which are strategic in nature.
5. That the initial membership of these community advisory committees be selected through a publicly advertised process with a nominating committee established by the members of existing municipal advisory committees on access, equity and human rights from among those members not seeking appointment.
6. That City Council appoint at least 2 Members of Council to serve on each of the above named community advisory committees on access, equity and human rights.
7. That City Council appoint a Member of Council as a Special Advocate on disability issues.
8. That Community Councils be permitted to establish working groups on access, equity and human rights issues as needs currently exist or arises.
9. That sensitivity and awareness training and materials on all access, equity and human rights issues be provided to all persons involved with the municipal structure, including elected officials, emergency services personnel, all staff, contractors and persons appointed to city committees.

Aboriginal Self Determination

10. That City Council endorse the principle of Aboriginal self determination and work with the Aboriginal people to achieve this goal.
11. That City Council establish an Office of Aboriginal Affairs.
12. That City Council support initiatives to support the cultural, social, economic and political participation of Aboriginal communities in Toronto's civic life.

Disability Access

13. That City Council establish an Office of Disability Issues.
14. That there be a review of all disability related policies created by the former municipalities, with a compilation of best practices to remove systemic barriers in employment, goods, services and facilities, and that these best practices be endorsed by Council.
15. That City Council authorize an external review of the policies and services and establish time lines for change/improvement regarding the mobility/access of people with disabilities within the city, including:
    • Streetscaping, e.g. (Ramped corners with tactile warning strips, practical street door access solutions, and enforcement of clear paths on all pedestrian walkways)
    • specialized traffic signals, e.g. (Audio signals and signals which can prolong the pedestrian walk cycle at user request for those who cannot cross safely within the standard cycle timing)
    • the services provided by - the TTC, Wheeltrans, taxicabs.
16. That City Council establish TTY's in all departments and in public areas of buildings and in the community.

Advocacy and Partnership

17. That City Council continue to act as an advocate for the equal treatment of same sex spouses.
18. That City Council take steps to establish a parallel pension benefits programs for same sex spousal families and that this remain in place until such time as legislative prohibitions are removed.
19. That to promote the image of Toronto as a "global city", the Access and Equity Office work with civic endorsed programs, such as the Olympic Bid, The Gay Games, small business outreach, etc., as opportunities for businesses owned and operated by members of the human rights protected groups.
20. That the scope of the work on hate activity include hate crimes and incidents motivated by racism, sexism, antisemitism, bigotry, or homophobia, etc.
21. That the inter agency working group on hate activity be requested to continue its work.
22. That, where required, inter agency staff working groups be established to address specific problems.
23. That the Council implementation strategy arising from the Urban Forum on Immigration and Refugee Issues, already approved by Council, be vigorously implemented.

Civic Appointments

24. That for the purpose of implementing Council's policy on appointments to agencies, boards, commissions and special purpose bodies, the definition of 'citizen' include all persons who pay property taxes or who live within the boundaries of the City of Toronto including permanent residents, refugees, refugee claimants, residents without homes.
25. That the foregoing definition of 'citizen' be used in making appointments to agencies, boards commissions and special purpose bodies, except where there is a requirement in law for Canadian Citizenship to serve as a member of these bodies.
26. That the age restriction used in making appointments to agencies, boards, commissions and special purpose bodies be removed except where there is a requirement in law for an age to be attained to serve as a member of these bodies.
27. That an annual report be provided to City Council on the participation rates of the human rights protected groups in appointments made to agencies, boards, commissions and special purpose bodies.
28. That the Nominating Committee establish goals and timetables for increasing the diversity of persons being recommended for civic appointments.

Participation and Communications

29. That resources be available to facilitate public participation on all citizen advisory committees established by Council as well as the community advisory or management committees of agencies, boards, commissions and special purpose bodies, including the provision of information in alternate formats, languages, attendant care, child care, and using accessible locations.
30. That the communications strategies for municipal elections take account of the City's linguistic diversity and levels of literacy.
31. That all visual identity, cultural programs and special events of the City reflect the diversity of the City's population.
32. That the City continue to provide awareness and public education programs which support the principles of inclusion, respect for differences, the achievement of human rights, and the elimination of harassment and hate activities.
33. That the awards and scholarship programs which recognise and contribute to the City's objectives regarding access, access, equity and human rights be continued.
34. That provision be made in the facilities provided to the media to ensure participation and allocation of space for the "ethnic and community" media to facilitate increased coverage of municipal issues.
35. That the multi-lingual capacity of the City be maintained and enhanced through the use of the ATT line, the provision of printed materials in languages, purchase of service agreements with community agencies, the identification and remuneration of staff with language skills, and the continued use of in-house interpreters and community liaison staff.
36. That the Nathan Phillips Square guidelines regarding anti-discrimination which govern the use of the Square be extended to all "civic squares" and that the Municipal Code be amended accordingly.

Services and Planning

37. That annual targets be set for increasing the number of child care spaces and hours of operation.
38. That housing services for refugees become a priority.
39. That the Official Plan and the Social Development Strategy respond to the barriers and specific needs identified during the consultations held by the Task Force.
40. That the Official Plan provide for the recognition of the heritage of the diverse communities in the City.
41. That Departments involve residents in program advisory committees to evaluate services and ensure that these processes include persons who are from the City's diverse communities.
42. That the recreation programs which are targeted to specific communities be continued, including lifeguard training for black youth, special hours for Muslim women, and leadership training for youth from high risk populations.
43. That the zoning, building and fire regulations used by the City be reviewed to address the barriers regarding the practice of cultural and spiritual traditions of the Aboriginal people, and requirements for places of worship of the City's diverse communities, and that this review identify those regulations which fall under the mandate of other levels of government.
44. That City Council adopt a set of accessibility guidelines for all City-owned buildings and other properties and that an audit be completed to determine accessibility gaps to implement an action plan to address these gaps.
45. That City Council work to adopt a pro-active response to accessibility issues with architects and developers which would seek to enhance the legislated requirements under the Ontario Building Code and with a more stringent enforcement mechanism.
46. That Council investigate means of augmenting the city's stock of affordable accessible housing for people with disabilities, both privately and publicly owned.
47. That the subsidies program be modified to create portability which matches the need of the tenant with the disability, rather than the unit.

Employment and Leadership

48. That an employment equity policy be adopted based on the principle of achieving a workforce which reflects the population at all occupational levels of the City.
49. That additional workforce surveys be conducted as needed to assemble a complete data base from which to monitor the on-going participation of designated groups in the City's workforce.
50. That in the establishment of any new compensation and benefit programs for employees an independent "gender equity" /"wage gap" analysis take place to determine the impact of new systems on the "wage gap".
51. That the City establish "mentoring" and "job demonstration" programs to provide exposure to individuals from groups who face barriers gaining work experience, and that the City encourage and recognise employees who act as volunteers for these programs.
52. That specialised training programs be offered to employees to enhance their language and literacy skills or to facilitate entry into "non-traditional" work, with particular attention being paid to employees for whom English is not their first language, or for whom technology and high literacy levels have not been occupational requirements.
53. That Council allocate sufficient resources to provide work place accommodation for employees with disabilities in order that productivity and the work experience parallels as nearly as possible that of able bodied peers.
54. That the Fair Wage and Labour Trades Office continue to oversee the anti-discrimination requirement of the Worker's Rights Policy and that the grounds of anti-discrimination be updated to include those covered by the Human Rights Policy.

Employee Consultation

55. That the employee working groups on issues related to the designated groups be continued as needed to address emerging issues, and that they liaise with the relevant community advisory committees on an on-going basis.
56. That employees be encouraged to participate in corporate and community programs to improve staff understanding of the City's diverse communities.

Complaints

57. That a Human Rights Office be established to receive inquiries and investigate complaints of discrimination regarding employment, access to services, and hate related activities.
58. That the organizational location of the Human Rights Office be established to facilitate arms-length investigations, including those relating to complaints of discrimination in the employment process and the delivery of services.
59. That the Human Rights Office submit an annual report to Council on its activities.

Building Economic Capacity

60. That the City's Economic Development Strategy specifically outline pro-active strategies that include the City's diverse communities.
61. That the implementation strategy provided to City Council on the recommendations arising from the Urban Aboriginal Economic Development Seminar be implemented and that progress reports be provided.
62. That the purchasing process be used as a mechanism for communicating the City's leadership role on anti-discrimination and against harassment within the workplaces of Toronto.
63. That information and outreach activities be continued to ensure that businesses from various communities have access to the procurement process of the City and its agencies.
64. That the purchasing process of the City utilise strategies such as reducing the size of contracts and sub-contracts as mechanisms for increasing the participation of businesses owned by designated groups.
65. That an annual report be submitted to Council on the proportion of expenditure spent with businesses owned by the designated groups.

Building and Supporting Community Capacity

66. That City Council continue to support community organizations through its various grants programs and that a strategy be developed to facilitate equitable distribution of grants funding.
67. That resource support, such as meeting space, information sessions and research information, continue to be provided to community organizations to assist them in their efforts to provide services to their communities and to facilitate their participation in civic society.
68. That all organizations in receipt of City grants be required to demonstrate their commitment to access and equity.
69. That the Day Care grants program be expanded across the City.
70. That the Breaking the Cycle of Violence (BTCV) grants program be expanded across the City.
71. That the Multicultural grants program continue to use anti-racism and anti-hate as its selection criteria if no new funds are available in 1999.
72. That City Council work towards the establishment of a comprehensive access and equity grants program to support the advocacy efforts of the human rights protected groups.

Monitoring and Evaluation

73. That the report template for all reports to Council be modified to include an impact statement on access, equity and human rights.
74. (a) That the community advisory committees on access, equity and human rights issues meet jointly at least twice per year to review the on-going implementation of the corporate action plan for access, equity and human rights and to review the annual reports; and

    (b) That these joint meetings include participation by any access, equity and human rights working groups established by Community Councils.

75. That each Department, Agency, Board, Commission or special purpose body submit an Access, Equity and Human Rights Action Plan to City Council.
76. That each Department evaluate its policies, programs and services to identify barriers experienced by the human rights protected groups and that the Access and Equity Centre prepare measurement tools for this purpose.
77. That City Council request its Agencies, Boards, Commissions and special purpose bodies to provide an annual report on their implementation of employment equity, community access, service equity and human rights.
78. That the annual employment equity report to Council on the status of the human rights protected groups in its workforce, report on representation, promotions, compensation, training, benefits and exits.
79. That an annual consolidation of access and equity measures be produced in a report card format.

Organization and Resources

80. That organizational structures and resources for access, equity and human rights be established:
    • to provide policy development,
    • to facilitate community advisory processes including committees relating to the human rights protected groups and other Committees of Council as required,
    • to administer anti-racism, access and equity grants,
    • to provide "arms length" investigation of human rights issues,
    • to implement awareness and public education programs on access, equity and human rights issues,
    • to act as a resource for departments and agencies in the development and implementation of their action plans,
    • to liaise with community organizations regarding emerging issues and to assist with civic involvement,
    • to conduct research on the needs of the human rights protected groups and to provide results to departments for use in service delivery,
    • to monitor legislative proposals for impact on the human rights protected groups,
    • to implement communication strategies to increase involvement and access to services,
    • to promote the City's position to other levels of government and external bodies,
    • and to provide advice and research to Council Committees.

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