Digital Accessibility for those with Unique Abilities

I write all things accessibility, career development, diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace.

The candidate experience for individuals with disabilities is all too often arduous. Human Resources (HR) professionals are often unaware of the challenges for individuals seeking employment with a disability. The goal is to provide total accessibility for all, in addition to individualized accommodations as needed.

The Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) reported the June 2021 unemployment rate for people with disabilities as 10.9%, compared to individuals without a disability of 5.9%. The National Federation of the Blind said The staggering unemployment rate of blind and visually impaired candidates remained a little over 70% during 2017.

According to the 2015 national survey by PEAT, 46% of job applicants with disabilities rated their application experience as difficult to impossible. In spite of having the qualifications, trainings, and/or certifications, the same study reported that a great majority of job seekers with disabilities rarely made it to the interview phase.

Common problems for visually impaired / blind job seekers and job seekers with disabilities in general encountered the following web accessibility limitations:

• Absence of alt-tagging images
• Extended time to complete timed assessments
• Labeling elements of buttons and additional adjustments
• Captioning videos

This is not an exhaustive list, but a small example of the barriers faced by job seekers with disabilities.

HR professionals should begin by understanding all of the barriers limiting people with disabilities from fully participating in the lifecycle of employment. In order to recruit, employ, and retain people with disabilities, accessibility and inclusivity must be apart of the equation.

I consult companies on creating a digital accessible workplace as a part of their organization’s diversity, equity, and inclusion plan.