People with disabilities sometimes encounter unnecessary barriers that aren’t faced by people without disabilities in both their personal and professional lives. In too many instances, these obstacles have made it more difficult for many people with vision, hearing, motor, and cognitive disabilities from seeking and obtaining gainful employment.

As a business, you want to hire the best candidates for the job. However, you also want to emphasize accessibility within your organization without compromising your search for the top talent.

Fortunately, these two different motivations don’t have to be in conflict. By looking for people with the six traits below, you might improve your odds of hiring outstanding employees who also are a good fit for the pro-accessibility mindset.

Labor Day 2019 marked the 125th as a national holiday, a day the US Department of Labor says "celebrates and honors the greatest worker in the world – the American worker." Let's be certain we include the contributions of the members of the workforce with disabilities in that celebration and continue to work to create a more inclusive and more accessible workplace that empowers the future achievements of all workers.

In order to be successfully adopted across the organization, accessibility can’t be limited to the lower rungs of the business — it needs to be supported by executives in the C-suite as well.

Here 8 of the most important things that executives need to know about accessibility.

Having people with disabilities visible and present in the community, making decisions, and being valued has the transformational power to impact attitudes toward inclusion. Being inclusive is important to an organization’s success in order to enact positive social change that includes all members of their community.

More than ever, companies are striving to innovate workforce and culture. Companies that aim to be diverse and inclusive of people with disabilities take accessibility seriously, and also recognize that accessibility is a civil right.

Getting accessibility buy-in at work can make the difference between creating websites and apps that are usable and understandable to everyone, or preventing large segments of people from learning about your company and purchasing its products and services. But how do you achieve web accessibility buy-in?

Microsoft recently announced a new grant called AI for Accessibility. This grant is geared to encourage developers to create products using Microsoft’s AI tools that will help people with disabilities. Here's an introduction to AI's role in accessibility and some information about Microsoft's grant.

In small companies and large corporations alike, people often ask, “When should we start accounting for digital accessibility?” It’s a hard question that usually has the same, simple answer: as soon as possible.

National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) is a celebration of the value and talents that people with disabilities bring to the workforce — but it's also a reminder of the challenges and discrimination employees with disabilities sometimes face. Read about NDEAM and get resources to help promote workplace equality.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects people with disabilities from discriminatory hiring practices from pre-employment through their last day on the job. See how web accessibility applies to the hiring process.

Every new business needs to understand ADA and web accessibility requirements. Incorporating accessibility into your business plan from the beginning will make the process easier and your website more compliant. Read these 10 tips for proactively planning for digital accessibility.

Last Saturday, May 12th saw the celebration of International Nurses Day, which occurs every year on the birthday of history’s most famous nurse, Florence Nightingale. The event is intended to recognize and raise awareness of the contributions that nurses around the world make to society. Improving the accessibility of healthcare websites can go a long way in making nurses more efficient and productive. 

The Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA) has designated March as Brain Injury Awareness Month. The Bureau of Internet Accessibility fully supports disability awareness initiatives, including Brain Injury Awareness Month during the month of March. We encourage readers to get involved in whatever ways best suit them.

February is Career and Technical Education (CTE) Month®, which makes it the perfect time to talk about how important it is for CTE organizations to emphasize web accessibility.

Braille isn’t just used for standard reading and writing — it also allows the visually impaired to surf the web and use a smartphone through assistive technology.

Observing and celebrating the NDEAM movement is a great way to promote awareness about the challenges and unique benefits of being a disabled employee, and to further foster a sense of community, compassion, and inclusion in your workplace.

People with disabilities represent a major opportunity for employers. Fortunately, both employers and job candidates stand to benefit from websites with accessible design in multiple ways.

An accessibility coordinator is responsible for directing and controlling online features, making them user-friendly for everyone — especially for the visually, auditory, and physically impaired, as well as people with all types of disabilities.

According to the findings, the unemployment rate for people with disabilities is currently 10.8, down from 11.7 just 12 months earlier.