The disability rights movement has, for a couple of decades, brought the injustices faced by people with disabilities to the public’s attention, eventually resulting in the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) in 1990. Designed to address discrimination in the areas of employment, public accommodation, public services, transportation and telecommunications, the ADA continues to expand its efforts to ensure equal opportunities for all.
Property owners and managers are familiar with physical ADA standards such as wheelchair ramps, and parking and lighting accommodations, but are you paying enough attention to your website?
All government websites and the websites of any organization that could be considered a “public accommodation” are required to comply with ADA guidelines.
Your Website is One of Your Properties
Though the use of technology has increased at a rapid rate, even for those who are sight and hearing impaired, guidelines for accessibility have grown at a slower pace. The most recent set of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) came ten years after the 2.0 version.
The new guidelines increase the number of “success criteria” that are possible, but in most cases, allows for organizations to comply at differing levels:
- Level A: Compliance with WCAG 2.0
- Level AA: The level property managers should comply with
- Level AAA: Compliance with WCAG 2.1
Why should you level up, if you can? The new success criteria not only address changes in technology, they also expand the range of disabilities that may be helped by greater accommodations. In addition to sight and hearing disabilities, this can include those with limited movement, speech disabilities, photosensitivity and even some learning and cognitive limitations. Gaining greater access to vital information via desktop computers, laptops, tablets, and mobile devices can be a life-changing for disabled individuals.
Download our 7 Key Steps to ADA Compliance on Property Websites
In our new download, you’ll learn:
- Why ADA compliance is important
- How ADA compliance provides a better experience for all users, potentially improving your organizations’ bottom line
- The ADA guidelines your team should know how to implement if they add or update content on your website
- How to stay informed about ADA updates
BONUS: Contains a convenient compliance checklist!
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