GENERAL INFORMATION
Commitment
Transport Bourassa is committed to promoting an inclusive and accessible culture. This initiative is not only a central element of our corporate culture but is also essential to our continuous development and competitiveness as an employer in the transportation sector. We will actively participate in creating an accessible Canada by implementing an accessibility framework that ensures our employees and the public we serve have the best possible experience with our services, products, and infrastructure.
We are aware that creating an accessible environment is a gradual process, and we are committed to continuously identifying, eliminating, and preventing barriers. Transport Bourassa will build on the initiatives already in place when developing our first accessibility plan, in accordance with the requirements of the Canadian Accessibility Act. This plan will serve as a guide for our organization to achieve our accessibility goals and to promote a culture based on trust and inclusivity.
To achieve this, it is essential to recognize and understand the needs of people with disabilities. This is why this plan was developed in collaboration with employees who identify as having disabilities, through surveys and individual interviews. Additionally, external organizations that support people with disabilities were consulted during the development of this plan.
At Transport Bourassa, we are committed to ensuring that our organization and the services we offer are accessible to all, including people with disabilities. All Canadians have the right to access our services fairly, and those who work with us have the right to perform their duties in an accessible environment.
Description of Transport Bourassa
Since 1956, Transport Bourassa has established itself as a key player in logistics and road freight transportation.
We offer flexible solutions tailored to your needs, including Less Than Truckload (LTL), Full Truckload (TL), and container transportation. Our expertise in logistics, handling, and warehousing ensures efficient management of your supply chain.
Our mission is to facilitate the fast, efficient, and safe shipping and receiving of all essential goods. We are committed to being reliable, trustworthy, and transparent, focusing on the needs of our customers.
As a family-owned business, we value teamwork and solidarity, which translate into consistent efficiency and service quality passed down through three generations.
Our success is based on our exceptional customer service and the daily involvement of our 600 professionals and drivers dedicated to the success of our clients.
Transport Bourassa also offers warehousing services. With 525,000 square feet of space across eight warehouses, we provide short, medium, and long-term storage solutions. We have unlimited capacity to store various types of goods, such as pallets, rolls, barrels, vehicles, bulk items, and much more.
Comments
We welcome your feedback on our accessibility plan and inclusivity within our organization. You can share your comments by contacting us at the following:
Ian Marineau, Vice President of Human Resources and Road Safety, and compliance
Email: ian.marineau@bourassa.ca
Phone: 450-346-5313, ext. 1693
Claudine Galipeau, Director of Human Resources
Email: claudine.galipeau@bourassa.ca
Phone: 450-346-5313, ext. 1248
Implementation of the Plan
In accordance with the Canadian Accessibility Act, we are committed to publishing an annual progress report evaluating our accessibility efforts. Additionally, we will review and update our accessibility plan every three years. These progress reports and updates to our plan will be developed in collaboration with consultations involving employees with disabilities within our organization.
Definitions
Accessibility: Refers to the necessity of intentionally and thoughtfully considering people with disabilities when designing or modifying products, services, and facilities, so that they can be used and enjoyed by people of all abilities.
Barrier: The Canadian Accessibility Act defines a barrier as follows: “Any element, including physical or architectural barriers, those related to information, communications, behavior, or technology, or those resulting from a policy or practice, that hinders the full and equal participation of people with disabilities, including physical, intellectual, cognitive, mental, or sensory disabilities, learning or communication disorders, or functional limitations.”
Disability: The Canadian Accessibility Act defines disability as follows: “A deficiency, including physical, intellectual, cognitive, mental, or sensory, a learning or communication disorder, or a functional limitation, whether permanent, temporary, or episodic, visible or not, and whose interaction with a barrier hinders the full and equal participation of a person in society.”
Employment
At Transport Bourassa, accessibility must be guaranteed at every stage of the career journey within the company. We are committed to encouraging individuals from designated and underrepresented groups to apply for the various available positions.
We recognize the need to survey and identify employees with disabilities. Subsequently, we must optimize our recruitment practices to promote the hiring of people with disabilities.
Actions to be undertaken:
- Update job postings and the career section of our website to encourage candidates from designated groups to apply when the job criteria permit.
- Raise awareness among recruitment teams about potential biases towards designated groups.
Built Environment
We have several facilities across the province of Quebec, including terminals, warehouses, and a building housing our offices. We ensure the maintenance and repair of these facilities based on their needs.
The actions we will take are:
- Involve the relevant stakeholders more actively during the development of new facilities and the selection of locations.
- Conduct a comprehensive assessment of all our facilities to identify accessibility barriers.
- Involve the relevant stakeholders more actively during major building repairs.
Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
We use a wide range of technologies and systems. Some are standard off-the shelf products distributed to businesses, while others have been customized or developed in-house. Our team of information technology experts helps us stay up to date with developments and continuously improve our systems. We ensure that our website complies with the accessibility standards set by the Government of Canada, both in terms of content and presentation.
The actions we will take are:
- Continue ensuring that new systems meet modern accessibility standards. ∙
- Stay informed about new communication technologies and consider them when developing or acquiring new software.
Communications Other Than ICT
The priority area of communications recognizes that each individual receives, gives, and understands information in different ways. Organizations must consider these differences and ensure that their communications are delivered in various accessible formats for those who need them. Communication products include, but are not limited to, hiring documents, compliance documents, and our company policies.
The actions we will take are:
- Evaluate ways to make essential documents more accessible to all groups.
- Provide the necessary tools to the HR team to facilitate internal and external communication in clear and understandable language.
Acquisition of Goods, Services, and Facilities
We strive to continuously adapt our practices to make our services as inclusive as possible for people with disabilities. In this approach, it is essential to consider accessibility criteria in all our decisions and operations.
We must integrate accessibility from the outset of all procurement processes to minimize potential barriers.
The actions we will take are:
- Commit to implementing an evaluation process that considers accessibility when acquiring goods and services for our facilities.
Design and Delivery of Programs and Services
The services offered by Transport Bourassa primarily focus on freight transportation. Our clients are mainly businesses. As such, individuals with disabilities who work for our clients may interact with us through our website or by direct contact with our customer service or sales teams. To date, we have not received any complaints regarding the accessibility of our programs and services from our clients.
The actions we will take are:
- Ensure that accessibility is integrated from the design stage of our programs and services.
Transportation
- Transport Bourassa specializes in freight transportation, not passenger transport. The Canadian Accessibility Act primarily focuses on the transportation of people, which means that our actions do not directly apply to this sector.
Consultation
To fulfill Transport Bourassa’s commitment to making our work environment accessible to all, we have developed our accessibility plan in collaboration with our employees, including those with disabilities.
We have gathered feedback and advice from members of our team as well as external organizations through various means.
We will organize one-on-one meetings with employees who identify as part of designated groups to better understand their situation and gather their input on current practices and possible improvements.
We will continue conducting surveys with our employees, including those with disabilities, as well as any working groups formed under this accessibility plan, to assess our progress and ensure that we are implementing the changes we have committed to.
FEEDBACK PROCESS
Transport Bourassa encourages you to share any observations regarding accessibility barriers you have encountered during your interactions with us or related to the implementation of our accessibility plan.
The Canadian Accessibility Act defines a barrier as follows: “Any element, including those of a physical or architectural nature, related to information, communications, behaviors, or technology, or the result of a policy or practice, that hinders the full and equal participation in society of people with disabilities, including physical, intellectual, cognitive, mental, or sensory disabilities, learning or communication disorders, or functional limitations.”
Individuals Responsible for the Feedback Process
We are open to your comments regarding our plan and accessibility within the company. You can submit your feedback to the following contacts:
Ian Marineau, Vice President of Human Resources and Road Safety, and compliance
Email: ian.marineau@bourassa.ca
Phone: 450-346-5313, ext. 1693
Claudine Galipeau, Director of Human Resources
Email: claudine.galipeau@bourassa.ca
Phone: 450-346-5313, ext. 1248
How to Provide Your Feedback
There are several ways to share your feedback with the company, including by mail, phone, email, through social media, or by visiting one of our terminals.
To provide feedback:
- Mail: 800 de Dijon street, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC, J3B 8G3
- Phone: 450-346-5313 ext. 1693 or 1248
- Email: ian.marineau@bourassa.ca and claudine.galipeau@bourassa.ca
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/transportbourassa/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/transport-bourassa-inc-/
PROGRESS REPORT (JUNE 1, 2024)
GENERAL OVERVIEW
Transport Bourassa is committed, under the implementation of the Accessibility Act, to supporting the federal government’s initiative to identify, prevent, and eliminate accessibility barriers.
In this first progress report of our Accessibility Plan 2023-2026, we present our findings and achievements to date.
We continue to make accessibility a daily priority within Transport Bourassa. The actions taken so far have primarily focused on evaluating the company’s procedures and practices in the areas defined by the Accessibility Act. The changes aimed at eliminating accessibility barriers will be implemented gradually over several years.
1- Feedback
For any questions regarding this report, you can contact the following individuals:
Ian Marineau, Vice-President of Human Resources and Road Safety Email: ian.marineau@bourassa.ca
Phone: 450-346-5313, ext. 1693
Claudine Galipeau, Director of Human Resources
Email: claudine.galipeau@bourassa.ca
Phone: 450-346-5313, ext. 1248
2 – Employment
When developing the accessibility plan, we realized that individuals with disabilities may face several barriers related to access to employment. Therefore, we will implement several solutions to make jobs more accessible for people with disabilities.
Barriers:
- Individuals with disabilities may self-eliminate from the selection process if they feel unable to participate;
- Assessment methods can present barriers for individuals with disabilities;
- Assumptions, biases, and preconceived notions of managers and recruiters, often stemming from a limited understanding of disabilities and potential accommodations, as well as the belief that a worker with a disability cannot contribute, complete all tasks, or has the same abilities as other workers, constitute significant barriers;
- Individuals with disabilities often hesitate to express their concerns about the obstacles they face. Additionally, they may not know whom to contact when they encounter an accessibility issue;
- Biases in performance management can lead to reduced promotion opportunities for individuals with disabilities;
- Fear of retaliation may also hinder the careers of people with disabilities.
Initiatives:
- The recruitment team underwent training in 2024. During this training, recruiters learned how to identify and manage unconscious biases during interviews, particularly regarding individuals with disabilities;
- Training on harassment and violence prevention will be provided to all employees;
- Job postings have been modified to include a statement encouraging applications from individuals with disabilities;
- The recruitment team will receive training on diversity and inclusion; ∙ With the publication of the accessibility plan, we hope to receive feedback from workers regarding accessibility at Transport Bourassa.
3 – Built Environment
To date, we are not fully aware of all the barriers employees face in the built environment, as we have not yet conducted a thorough assessment.
Once the assessment is complete, a detailed action plan will be developed to identify the most urgent priorities, long-term objectives, and to establish a timeline for the work to be done at each of Transport Bourassa’s locations.
Barriers:
- For employees experiencing difficulties with the built environment, accommodations must be implemented on a case-by-case basis; ∙ Conference rooms and common areas are not fully accessible.
Initiatives:
- Employees can contact the accessibility coordinators at any time to request workplace accommodations based on their needs;
- An initial meeting will be held with the person responsible for buildings to establish the action plan.
4 – Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
To date, we are not aware of the main challenges that individuals with disabilities may face at Transport Bourassa. We have not received any feedback on this matter and have not yet conducted a thorough assessment.
Once feedback is received, we will collaborate with an IT specialist to address the issues and implement initiatives to overcome the barriers.
Initiative:
- Creation of a feedback form allowing employees to anonymously submit their comments regarding accessibility barriers.
5 – Communications other than ICT
We recognize the need to focus on the use of clear language in all our communications, and that all employees must be made aware of this.
Barrier:
- Employees may not fully understand the importance of using clear and simple language in their emails.
Initiative:
- Raise awareness among employees about the use of clear and simple language.
6 – Procurement of Goods, Services and Facilities
Currently, there is no official assessment to ensure that the procurement of goods, services, and facilities at Transport Bourassa takes accessibility into account.
Initiative:
- Conduct an analysis of the procurement of goods, services, and facilities to ensure there are no accessibility barriers.
7 – Design and Delivery of Programs and Services
To date, we have not received any complaints regarding the accessibility of our programs and services from our clients, nor have we observed any difficulties in this area.
Initiative:
- We will ensure that accessibility is integrated from the design phase of programs and services and during their updates.
8 – Transportation
As mentioned in our accessibility plan, Transport Bourassa specializes in the transportation of goods, not people. The Canadian Accessibility Act primarily focuses on the transportation of people, which means that our actions do not directly apply to this sector.
9 – Consultations
With the implementation of the accessibility plan, Transport Bourassa will engage more with all employees living with a disability to improve the company’s
accessibility. The consultations will continue until 2026, with any additional employees who wish to disclose their disability and assist us in achieving our objectives.
10 – Conclusion
Accessibility is a priority at Transport Bourassa. We strive to build a company where every employee feels comfortable and valued.
We aim that by 2026, all employees will be aware that they can safely and voluntarily disclose their status as individuals with disabilities, so that we can take the necessary accommodations to make their work environment more comfortable.