Within the recruitment industry, so much of the recruitment process takes place online. Whether searching for a job, submitting a CV, approving a timesheet or even checking in on your organisation’s latest activity, the majority of this activity tends to take place on a website or through an app. Recruitment websites are designed to be used throughout every stage of the recruitment process and making sure they’re fully accessible goes far beyond a legal requirement.
Over 11 million people in the UK have a disability or impairment, and digital accessibility can be key to leading an independent lifestyle. Having the flexibility to adapt a website’s colours or text size can help users with visual impairments. Being able to use video or audio instead of text can help users with cognitive impairments navigate a website with ease. These are simple adjustments that can be made to your website that result in a host of benefits to your audience.
According to a recent report by the House of Commons, there is currently a disability employment gap of 30%. This is the difference in the employment rate of people with disabilities and people without disabilities 1. By creating a digitally accessible website or app, organisations are helping to reduce this gap and break down barriers in the job search. Organisations and initiatives such as the Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative (RIDI) and Disability Confident provide excellent resources to help make the recruitment process more inclusive.
If you’re not ensuring your website or apps are accessible, you could be missing out on experienced and skilled people who could have valuable impact on your organisation.
Below are three simple ways to alter your website to become a more accessible platform:
Use assistive technology
Using technology such as ReciteMe is an excellent way to ensure your website is fully accessible and optimised. ReciteMe is a could based software that goes on top of your website, which means users don’t even need to download any software. The tool can change text sizes, colours, use audio over text, add a screen mask and even change the language to over 100 different language options. This is an example of how you can quickly and easily ensure your website is fully accessible.
Simplify your language
The language you use on your website and digital content can really impact how a user navigates your site and uses your sites different functions. Keeping your language simple and easy to read will help ensure your website is accessible. Avoid using technical jargon or too many acronyms and keep any instructions easy to follow.
Provide subtitles and alt text in your social media posts
Adding subtitles and an alternative text option to your images and videos is no longer the laborious process that it used to be. Sites such as YouTube and LinkedIn let you upload caption files to all your videos, making the subtitling process quick and simple. As well as subtitles, putting Alternative Text into your images will ensure all users can appreciate the images on your website. Microsoft will now automatically add alternative text for you, making the process much quicker.
If you’re interested in finding out more about our journey to become disability inclusive, click here for all the details.