Avoiding Inaccessibility in Remote Working Jobs

Despite the fact that more people are working in remote working jobs than ever before, there remains inaccessibility within that working pool. Inaccessibility affects disabled people in all areas of life and work is no exception. It seems that remote work is no exception either. 

There are many ways in which remote working jobs can be (usually unintentionally) inaccessible and exclusionary for disabled people. It is important that we are aware of this so that we can actively work to prevent this from happening and intervene when we see it already in motion. 

In this blog, we are going to discuss some of the ways in which inaccessibility can appear in remote working jobs and suggest tactics to tackle it too. Any suggestions of your own? Don’t hesitate to get in touch and join the conversation. 

What is Inaccessibility?

As a starting point, let’s talk about what we actually mean by inaccessibility. When something is inaccessible, it means that it is difficult or impossible to reach or obtain. When it comes to disability, this term is used to describe situations and scenarios in which disabled people are not able to obtain the same things or experiences as non-disabled people. For example, a job application is inaccessible if it means that a disabled person cannot get or is less likely to get the desired job due to this inaccessibility. 

Inaccessibility is everywhere in the world of recruitment and work. There are physically inaccessible buildings and workplaces, with no disabled parking, inaccessible toilets, poorly designed workspaces, no lifts, and so on. Physical inaccessibility is something we typically understand more and find it easier to come up with solutions to solve these problems. However, there is also the slightly more complex side of inaccessibility that refers to digital resources. Digital inaccessibility is much more common than we may think, and it is a bigger issue than many of us would consider it to be. 

Digital Inaccessibility 

Many people wrongly assume that something being online and available to be accessed via digital means allows that resource to be accessible to every type of person. This does not account for the range of disabilities, illnesses, and conditions that affect people all across the world and how they approach digital resources differently. 

Providing remote work opportunities for employees is a great step for disabled employees. Many disabled employees greatly benefit from being able to work from home some or all of the time. It allows them to avoid or cut down on commuting, build their own working environment, and have a better work-life balance. All of which is beneficial when managing any sort of disability or health condition. However, this doesn’t mean that working remotely is automatically accessible for all disabled people. 

According to U.K. accessibility laws, every website must meet four key criteria – it must be readable, operable, understandable, and robust. Despite this, many websites, servers, portals, and programmes are inaccessible. Often, screen readers cannot use them and/or alternatives are not provided, like transcripts or audio descriptions. This automatically makes the sites inaccessible to deaf and blind people, those with learning disabilities and difficulties, people with audio processing disorders, people with autism, and more. 

When it comes to remote work, employers need to be astutely aware of what software and sites are being used and whether they are digitally accessible or inaccessible. 

Inaccessibility of the Remote Work Format

On top of this, the format of working remotely can also be inaccessible. Working virtually may not always be accessible to disabled people in a range of ways. Reasons can include: 

• Virtual meetings can be inaccessible due to the visual/audio format. Many deaf, blind, autistic people and those with learning disabilities may struggle to stay on track and take in all the information needed through such a medium. 

• The change from physical to virtual means that speaking to a line manager or seeking help from another member of staff becomes more inaccessible. 

• Lack of connection and social interaction can cause loneliness and stress for all employees working from home. For disabled people, this can be heightened depending on their disability. 

• Working from home can cause more stress for disabled people depending on their home environment. For example, some people with autism and ADHD may struggle to concentrate and feel comfortable working in their home environment. Others may find they cannot get the equipment or facilities they need to complete their work at home. 

Overall, it is important to not assume that working from home is automatically accessible, inclusive, or enjoyable for all disabled people. Especially when digital resources and platforms come into the mix. It is critical that we consider the vast range of disabilities and consider each individual disabled person’s needs. We can’t assume what works for one person works for everyone else. 

What Can We Do About It?

Now that we have discussed the problems and potential pitfalls, we need to move on to thinking about what we can do about it. Luckily, there is a lot we can all do about it. Especially employers. 

To remove inaccessibility in remote working jobs we can:

• Listen to disabled people. Collect feedback and allow disabled employees to talk openly about how they are experiencing working from home. Before you assume how it is, make sure you listen and understand how it really is first. 

• Run disability-awareness training for all members of staff. For disabled employees to be truly included at work, their peers and colleagues need to be informed allies. Training is the best resource to help achieve this. 

• Consider alternative formats and extra equipment. Do your research and make the most of grants and schemes such as the Access to Work scheme to implement whatever resources your disabled employees need. Following step one of this list should help inform you on which direction to take here. 

• Offer remote working as a choice and not enforcement. Some employers wrongly assume that all disabled people want to work from home and may unintentionally force them into the model. This can cause stress and you can see valuable members of your team leave prematurely. Offering flexibility is one of the best choices for a disability-friendly employer. 

Ultimately, our priorities should be listening to disabled people openly about their experiences with remote work and offering tangible solutions to help. It can be as simple as that.

Find Accessible Remote Jobs with Careers with Disabilities

If you are looking for a remote job but you want accessibility to be considered too, we have you covered.

Check out our disability-friendly job board for current opportunities with inclusive, accessible employers across the UK. Search Accessibility Jobs now.

Everyone deserves the right treatment at work, regardless of what job they want to do.