Being inclusive is remarkably important for businesses. Diversity promotes understanding, caring and a strong society. Studies have shown that businesses that employ people with disabilities serve them a culture of understanding and accessibility. It is a very noble gesture towards those people, providing support to meet their needs and a step towards a better life for them.
It spreads a sense of equality in the work culture which makes them feel equally competent among others. In Australia, there are laws stating that people with disabilities should be able to access services like other customers. In case of any nuisance, they are eligible to complain under the Federal Disability Discrimination Act or state anti-discrimination laws. In this blog, you will get to know about how to make your workplace or business accessible to people with disabilities.
Train your team
Train your team, especially those who need to interact with customers regularly. Train them to behave around customers with disabilities to reduce the chances of hurting their sentiments. Also, teach ways to help these customers in need, provide adequate customer service and encourage them to make social interactions. These little things would make them feel comfortable and secure. It's both safer for your business and your team to take the required steps.Follow website accessibility practices
You can make your web page accessible to people with disabilities. Always speak or read out the links connecting your website instead of "click here" comment, co. This way screen readers will be able to relate to what you are linking to. Also, the use of a mouse or trackpad might not be customary for everyone. Hence design your social networking pages in such a way that people with disabilities can navigate easily using the keyboard.Include subtitles on your videos
Videos are one of the popular social media platforms. Business sectors use this medium for advertising and providing other required information to the audience. Try to incorporate open and close captioning on your videos. So that people with hearing issues can also watch your videos at ease without much struggle. This will also increase the audience for your video content. Also, people like to watch videos with the sound off at certain times, especially in public areas.Add alternative text to images
Adding text containing information related to your uploaded images will increase the accessibility of your images. This will allow the screen reading software to help with the understanding of the image on a site. Hence, an audience with visual impairments will find it easier to access your images. This small step will make them feel more inclusive along with increasing the accessibility of your site.Create an accessible office place
People with disabilities would find it difficult to manoeuvre in the workplace. Hence making the place accessible would be beneficial for them. To make the work area accessible, you can provide lower tables and desks, install ramps and keep their path clean by removing any obstacles that come in between. Also, make customary washrooms for their easy access where they can spend longer time without any interruption in need. These small steps will make them feel important and valuable. In addition to that, these will increase their productivity.Contrast the colour of your office entrance
Paint the entrance of your workplace in contrast to the surrounding. Make sure to show directions to different areas of our workplace using various sign boards or arrows. This will let customers with disabilities find you more easily.Avoid using reflective glass
With clear glass entrances, it might be difficult for people to ensure the correct pathway. As the shadows and reflections might mislead the visually impaired people into walking the other way. Thus, to make it easier for them to access, put necessary markings on the entrance, it can be the logo of your company or business hours. Make sure that you make these markings in contrasting colours on the glass so that they can be visible from a distance.Try to have clear communication
While interacting with customers with a disability, make sure you are focusing on the person and not on their disability. Ask respectfully if they need any help, and wait patiently for them to reply before asking twice again and again. If the customer is in a wheelchair make sure you bend to a certain level to be able to interact clearly.
Avoid asking long questions if possible instead ask questions that require only answers like "yes" or "no". Do not pretend to understand if you have not. You can politely ask them to show what they want. Make use of a communication board from a regional communication service for clear interaction.
If you are looking forward to making your business cater to those with disabilities, then opt to educate yourself first. As with proper education, you will be able to do it the right way, otherwise, it doesn't make any sense. Educate your team with the same for a better outcome. You can install automatic electric gate opener kits for those with disabilities. You can gain access to their control system using a remote control, or via a swipe card as well as a smartphone.
