Dive Brief:
- New apps and programs are helping employees with disabilities reach their full potential, writes SHRM. These technologies, available for computers, smartphones and tablets, assist visually and hearing impaired workers on the job.
- Blind workers and those with some sight loss can use screen-reading technology such as Window-Eyes and Jaws to help then perform on the job, says SHRM. These programs, through speech and Braille output, read computer screen content to users. ZoomTech and Magic magnify on-screen content and make cursors easier to see and track.
- Ava, a program for the hearing-impaired, picks up words and transforms them into text that can be viewed on smartphones and tablets. Older technologies for the hearing-impaired keep evolving, says SHRM. To help make conversations easier to hear, Bluetooth connected hearing aids are attached to streamers, amplification devices and smartphones.
Dive Insight:
Employers with concerns about whether they can accommodate employees with disabilities and satisfy rules under the Americans with Disabilities Act should have fewer fears, thanks to technological advances.
Some apps and programs are free, others are not. SHRM lists several new programs and old technologies that have evolved; each one is worth reviewing to find out how disabled employees can be successfully accommodated.
