The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits employers from discriminating against people with disabilities in regard to any employment practices or terms, conditions, and privileges of employment, including recruitment and application for employment.1 Many employers are starting to use the Internet to recruit new employees, to post jobs, and even for job applications. The majority of these recruiting processes are inaccessible.2 Under the ADA, employers who use on-line application processes may need to modify their procedures to ensure equal access for applicants with disabilities. One way employers can ensure equal access is to provide recruitment and application information through means other than the Internet when an applicant with a disability cannot access information on the computer. Another, perhaps more practical, alternative is to make on-line information accessible to people with disabilities by designing Web pages that meet the needs of individuals with motor, sensory, and neurological impairments. Four simple examples are:

1) Designing large graphics that mark hyperlinks so that people with tremors have more room to activate the links,

2) Keeping screens organized and uncluttered for individuals who are easily distracted,

3) Providing brief descriptions of short sounds for individuals with hearing impairments, and

4) Removing refresh options so that screen readers do not repeatedly restart while scrolling through a Web page.

The key to making on-line information accessible to people with disabilities is Web page design. In order to consider the accessibility needs of the end user, there are several design tips and validation services available to webmasters. For a summary of these, visit: Tips for Designing Accessible Web Pages at http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/webpages.html.

Footnotes

1. For additional information regarding nondiscrimination in the hiring process, see: A Technical Assistance Manual on the Employment Provisions (Title I) of the ADA (EEOC Guidance) at http://www.jan.wvu.edu/links/ADAtam1.html.

2. Bruyère, S., Erickson, W., & VanLooy, S. (2003). HR Processes and IT Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities: Improving Employer Practices under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University, School of Industrial and Labor Relations Extension Division, Program on Employment and Disability.
      

Reviewed 09/12/08.