Web Accessibility News

Blindness and severe vision impairment is predicted to affect almost 900 million people worldwide by 2050—up from around 338 million today, according to a new pre-print study accepted by The Lancet and highlighted on World Sight Day (8 October). Researchers led by Rupert Bourne, Professor of Ophthalmology at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), examined more than 500 studies showing trends in prevalence of blindness and vision loss, allowing them to make forecasts about vision loss over the next three decades…

As a result of COVID-19, many public transport agencies suspended collecting fares in order to avoid riders coming in close contact with the vehicle operator. For example, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) in New York City suspended collecting fares on buses in March 2020 in order to keep riders a safe distance away from drivers. The MTA only resumed fare collection on buses on 31 August, given the continued opening of businesses and the business need to resume collecting revenue…

Long before the coronavirus pandemic, the federal government had made improving the customer experience of its services, especially its digital tools, a key priority. Indeed, the White House placed customer service high on its list of priorities, with “Improving Customer Experience with Federal Services” as a top cross-agency priority (CAP) goal in the President’s Management Agenda. Improving the customer experience is also at the heart of the Centers of Excellence the General Services Administration has been running to help agencies modernize their IT…

Federal employees in many agencies have spent the majority of this year working from home because of the coronavirus pandemic. This major shift in workplace culture has forced agencies to rethink a range of daily processes, including conducting virtual interviews with prospective hires and onboarding new employees without having them set foot in an office. Congress and agencies have also looked at the benefits of recruiting remote workforce with in-demand skills that might not otherwise seek out government work…

Long before the coronavirus pandemic, the federal government had made improving the customer experience of its services, especially its digital tools, a key priority. Indeed, the White House placed customer service high on its list of priorities, with “Improving Customer Experience with Federal Services” as a top cross-agency priority (CAP) goal in the President’s Management Agenda. Improving the customer experience is also at the heart of the Centers of Excellence the General Services Administration has been running to help agencies modernize their IT…

Federal employees in many agencies have spent the majority of this year working from home because of the coronavirus pandemic. This major shift in workplace culture has forced agencies to rethink a range of daily processes, including conducting virtual interviews with prospective hires and onboarding new employees without having them set foot in an office. Congress and agencies have also looked

WWE has been served a lawsuit for denying equal access to its WWEShop website. Josue Romero, filed a lawsuit against WWE with the United States District Court Southern District Of New York On 10/6. According to the filing, “Romero is a visually-impaired and legally blind person who requires screen-reading software to read website content using his computer”. Romero’s lawsuit alleges shop.wwe.com “is not equally accessible to blind and visually-impaired consumers”. The suit states this violates the ADA(Americans With Disabilities Act)…

When James Blanchard designed his winery and taproom in Denver’s Dairy Block two years ago, compliance was front of mind. “Making sure your entry doorways are wide enough, your table spacing is wide enough, I have clear pathways to the restroom,” said Blanchard, who owns Blanchard Family Wines with his brother. “We 100% want to be accessible, we want to be compliant, we want to be inclusive for all.” So it came as a surprise when he was summoned to court this year…

The U.S. Department of Labor has dedicated October as National Disability Employment Awareness Month. For my first column this month, I wanted to revisit the sentiment my predecessor and mentor Edythe Copeland reinforced — the importance of decreasing discrimination of all kinds in the workforce. She fought for that throughout her career and, as I’ve mentioned before, I’m committed to continuing her legacy. Earlier this year, Edythe covered diversity, inclusion and resources for employers…

The realization that people with disabilities are often overlooked in access to digital technologies is not new. But it has of late come to the fore as the global pandemic has raged. The World Health Organisation highlights this in a brief urging awareness on the inequalities they may be facing during the pandemic, including accessing information. The organization defines a disabled person as anyone who has “a problem in body function or structure, an activity limitation, has a difficulty in executing a task or action; with a participation restriction”…