What is ADA Compliance and Why is it Important?
In the US alone, nearly 1 in every 5 people lives with some type of disability. On July 26, 1990, the former President of the United States – George Bush passed the ADA Act or the Americans with Disabilities Act. The idea of drafting the ADA was to ensure that those with disabilities were given the same opportunities as the others.
This law applies mostly to these fields:-
- State and local government
- Public and private spaces
- Employment
- Building codes
- Transportation &
- Telecommunication
ADA compliance refers to the ADA Standards for Accessible Design, which states that, everything electronic and Information Technology [such as the Internet and the inherent websites] must be comprehensible to those with disabilities. In the USA, not adhering to ADA compliance would simply mean a long and unwarranted legal battle. With resources like the WCAG – Web Content Accessibility guidelines and the ADA compliance services, businesses can open up accessibility to users all over. Just late last year, enterprising plaintiffs in New York sued over 100 businesses under a new theory; the ADA title III requires Braille gift cards.
More on WCAG
As always, web designers and digital marketers must necessarily keep their ear to the ground to be on the right side of the law. Let’s see what the web Content Accessibility Guidelines largely entail. The WCAG is a set of accessibility standards created by the World Wide Web Consortium [W3C] partnering multiple groups to help guide web content producers. They focus on how inclusive the web can be for those with disabilities. WCAG 2.0 is the technical standard that features 12 guidelines under 4 buckets. They need to be: Perceivable, Operable, Understandable and also, Robust. Here’s a comprehensive list of the WCAG parameters.
Check out the ready reckoner below for better comprehension
- Perceivable Guidelines: This section helps content producers to tailor their media for everyone. Guideline 1.1 Text Alternatives: Provide text alternatives for any non-text content so that it can be changed into other forms people need, such as large print, braille, speech, symbols or simpler language. Images must also contain caption & alt-text for better understanding. Read more here
- Operable Category: This focuses on the functionality of the website with well-defined rules. These comprise website navigation via keyboard, pausing of moving section to adjust against a user’s speed, and clearly labeling pages for ease of user reference. Learn more now
- Comprehensive Category: Web pages need to employ basic logic when it comes to language, navigation, and functionality [input in forms]. Head here for more specifics
- Robust Category: This speaks of the technicalities involved that helps readers understand the code. Know more
Designing your new website? If you ever think you would stumble with any of the ADA compliance guidelines, reach out to us and we would be able to help you. At Riant Data, we truly believe that an honest workplace is an all-inclusive one. To know more, drop us a mail at [email protected]