ACCESS IS MORE THAN BRICK AND MORTAR: THE BASICS OF WEB SITE ACCESSIBILITY

AGENDA Definitions Web Barriers Requirements Benefits Standards Areas to Consider Issues and Fixes Accessible Systems Racing League

DEFINITIONS Accessibility The quality of being accessible, or of admitting approach; receptibility. Usability The effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction with which users can achieve tasks in a particular environment of a product.

DEFINITIONS Interoperability The ability of software and hardware on multiple machines from multiple vendors to communicate. Assistive Technology (AT) A generic term that includes assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities and includes the process used in selecting, locating, and using them.

WEB BARRIERS Individuals who are blind or visually impaired: Complex science and math notation, images and image maps Multimedia (sound & video), frames, forms, and tables Navigation, Java scripts and programming code

WEB BARRIERS AT for individuals who are blind or visually impaired: Screen reader programs and Braille displays Screen magnification programs and High (or different) contrast settings (e.g., yellow text on a black background)

WEB BARRIERS Individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing: Multimedia features including sound and video clips Error, or information, system or application messages displayed through audible cues

WEB BARRIERS AT for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing: Assistive technology devices for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing (e.g., hearing aids) do not impact Web design significantly. Textual captioning and visual cues

WEB BARRIERS Individuals who have mobility disabilities: Manipulation of input devices, including the keyboard and mouse Difficulty holding down multiple keyboard keys simultaneously

WEB BARRIERS Individuals who have mobility disabilities: Alternative and adaptive keyboards and mice Breath control devices Head pointing/tracking devices On screen keyboards and mouse emulation programs Voice input/recognition

REQUIREMENTS: OVERVIEW Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) No specific requirements Section 508 (Federal Agencies) Access Board Standards and Federal Acquisition Regulation Section 503 (Federal Contractors) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)

REQUIREMENTS: OFCCP Contractors must ensure that qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans have an equal opportunity to apply and compete for jobs. This may include providing needed reasonable accommodations, unless doing so would cause undue hardship (significant difficulty or expense).

OFCCP CONTRACTOR ACTIONS Contractor Actions Prominently display a notice of how to obtain reasonable accommodations, including contact and process information. Incorporate “interoperable” technology into the online application system. Allow people who cannot use the online system because of a disability to apply for a job in an alternate way.

BASIC EMPLOYER BENEFITS Demonstrates commitment to diversity. Increases ability to attract and retain qualified employees: Workers with disabilities Older workers Workers with English as a second language – both in the U.S. and other countries Saves time by not having to build system workarounds for applicants. Avoids complaints from applicants.

COST BENEFITS Reduces or eliminates retrofitting to meet requirements Reduces cost to maintain once IT staff is trained Decreases costs associated with debugging Decreases amount of server capacity needed Decreases cost of translating websites into other languages

DESIGN BENEFITS Easier to navigate and find information Captions on videos are useful Information is not color dependent Web accessibility guidelines are widely- recognized international standards Increases site consistency Browser and mobile device compatibility Decreases loading time and bandwidth use Increases search engine rankings

Section World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) STANDARDS

AREAS TO CONSIDER: RECRUITMENT SYSTEMS

AREAS TO CONSIDER: OTHER Onboarding Training Performance Evaluation Time keeping Payroll

ISSUES AND FIXES Issue Individuals with disabilities, in particular those with cognitive disabilities may need more time to fill out forms and read content. Fix Provide a notification of a pending time out and the option to request additional time.

ISSUES AND FIXES Issue Flickering elements may induce seizures for users with photosensitive epilepsy. Any elements that flicker, blink or scroll may also be accessibility issues for users with low vision. Fix Avoid blinking, marquee or other auto- scrolling text.

ISSUES AND FIXES Issue Repetitive navigation links are usually on every page of a Website. For users who are unable to use a mouse, they must tab through each link in order to get to the main content. For screen reader users, they must listen to the repetitive information on each page. Fix Provide a method to skip repetitive links.

ISSUES AND FIXES Issue Users who are deaf or hard of hearing rely on synchronized captions to understand the audible sounds and speech of multimedia content. Fix Provide captioning for all video and audio content.

ISSUES AND FIXES Issue Users who are unable to use a mouse (due to dexterity disabilities or other reasons) rely on the keyboard to navigate and control the computer. Fix Ensure elements on a webpage are not only mouse driven, but have keyboard equivalents.

ACCESSIBLE SYSTEMS RACING LEAGUE

ACCESSIBLE SYSTEMS RACING LEAGUE (ASRL) Developed by EARN in partnership with JAN and ODEP Provides a basic evaluation of career site Provides consultation through EARN and JAN in identifying resources

ASRL DIAGNOSTIC TOOL Assessment of 10 areas Equal employment opportunity policy statement (OFCCP) Reasonable accommodation application process (OFCCP) Screen reader interoperability Significant time out period “Trigger text” (blinking, marquee or other auto-scrolling)

ASRL DIAGNOSTIC TOOL Assessment of 10 areas, cont. Repetitive navigation links Captioning for multimedia Text description Accessibility without use of mouse Accessibility of forms and documents

NEXT STEPS Request an assessment of your career site

CONTACT EARN Website: ASRL Information: Phone: