WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA, USA, December 18, 2020 /EINPresswire.com/ – One of the major achievements of President George HW Bush’s administration was the Disabled Americans Act (ADA). In fact, it was a landmark law that was the first of its kind in the world.
Currently, the ADA has become an important topic for many industry professionals. Many firms and businesses are making concerted efforts to ensure their online presence is ADA compliant. These efforts are vital because people with disabilities can enjoy every aspect of a company’s website and other social media in the same way that people without disabilities can.
Accordingly, this blog is devoted to some helpful information about the ADA, including (i) what it is; (ii) who is affected; (iii) What is the definition of “disability” (iv) and why is it important?
If you’d like to discuss ADA compliance for your law firm, we invite you to speak to us at Oamii. We have been supporting our digital marketing customers with their ADA compliance obligations for many years. Please fill out our online contact form or call us today at 561-228-4111.
1. What is the ADA?
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a civil rights law passed in 1990. The ADA is more than just a law, it is nothing less than a declaration of equality for people with disabilities. It was modeled after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
The ADA prohibits discrimination against any person on the basis of disability. This ban includes discrimination in employment, school, transport, communications, government services and in all places open to the general public – including online. Indeed, the ADA opened up many new opportunities and experiences for disabled people.
2. Who is affected by the ADA?
The ADA applies to all employers with 15 or more employees, including local, state, and federal governments. According to the ADA, employers cannot discriminate against people with disabilities when hiring, firing, training or in the application process. In addition, employers must make reasonable accommodation arrangements for those covered by the ADA. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regulates the behavior of employers within the framework of the ADA.
The ADA also includes public schools. In particular, schools must provide housing for students with disabilities so that they can participate in classes, extracurricular activities and school programs. The US Department of Justice and the US Department of Education both play a role in regulating schools under the ADA.
For transportation accommodation, the US Department of Transportation ensures that all public and private transportation companies adhere to the ADA. Public accommodations such as hotels, restaurants, retail stores, private schools, medical practices, and theaters must also adhere to the ADA. “Accommodation” has been interpreted to mean websites.
Finally, all telephone and internet companies must provide closed captioning for federally funded service announcements. You must also allow people with speech and hearing impairments to communicate over the phone using telecommunications relay services.
3. What is considered a “disability” under the ADA?
The term “disability” in the context of the ADA has a specific meaning. A person is considered disabled if they:
1. has a physical or mental impairment that significantly restricts participation in important life activities;
2. Has a record or history of such impairment; or
3. Is regarded as such mental or physical impairment.
It is important to note that the term “disability” in the ADA was originally interpreted narrowly by the courts. Accordingly, in 2008 Congress passed the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA).
The amended law made it easier for people to determine that they had a disability. In the ADAAA, Congress reiterated and clarified that the ADA is primarily a civil rights law, which means the focus is on whether or not discrimination has occurred, rather than on a scrutiny of whether or not a person has a disability Not.
4. Why is the ADA important?
Prior to the ADA, there were no laws to stop discrimination based on disability, and employers and schools did not have to provide shelter for disabled people. This meant that people lost jobs or could not get jobs at work and disabled students had fewer opportunities than others in the school system.
Therefore, the ADA is important because it enables all people to fully participate in society and provides a mechanism to stop discriminatory behavior. Indeed, the power of ADA is to codify the belief that people with disabilities should not be discriminated against in education, housing, employment, public housing, transportation, communication, leisure, health services, and access to public services.
In particular, people can stand up for their ADA rights by filing lawsuits in federal court demanding that the court stop violating ADA.
5. Operation of the ADA in relation to websites
The ADA does not specifically address websites and online compliance. Therefore, the courts had to decide how the ADA applies online. As noted above, the ADA interpreted the term “public accommodation places” to include websites. Indeed, websites with many inaccessible components can likely be viewed as discriminatory to people with disabilities who cannot access those components.
If an ADA violation is found, the outcome will likely be a fine or other penalty, as few safeguards for ADA violations are available. In addition, the courts are increasingly referring to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA, a set of accessibility guidelines published by a group known as the Web Accessibility Initiative of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
6. Let Oamii resolve your ADA accessibility needs in 72 hours
At Oamii, we offer our customers a platform that offers the following advantages:
1. Our platform is used by The Florida Bar (see https://www.floridabar.org so you can visit their website to see what it looks like or visit our website https://oamii.com) . In the lower left corner of the page you will see a blue wheelchair icon.
2. We can make your website ADA compliant within 72 hours of installation. For other providers, it can take 3 to 26 weeks for your website to be ADA compliant.
3. We use artificial intelligence and machine learning to reprocess your website every 24 hours and keep it compliant. Other providers do not offer automatic maintenance by default. They require manual review which can lead to human error.
4. We charge a small monthly deductible with no setup fee. Other providers charge a $ 3,000 to $ 5,000 setup fee to make your website ADA compliant, plus a monthly fee equal to ours or higher.
5. We will provide you with a website accessibility statement as soon as our systems have officially finished scanning and processing your website. Our system tests the functionality, source code and elements of your website and then makes the necessary adjustments for accessibility. No other provider offers this.
Trust Oamii
We have an efficient digital marketing system with clearly defined goals and expectations – including ADA compliance. We encourage continuous improvement, which in turn improves your bottom line.
The choice is yours with your marketing dollars and resources. If you want to increase your marketing reach with the help of a seasoned, professional digital marketing agency, look no further than Oamii to crack the code to improve your marketing game. We warmly welcome you to contact us at Oamii to help you market your business and build your business book. Please fill out our online contact form or call us today at 561-228-4111.
Source: https://www.oamii.com/time-to-discuss-ada-compliance-and-how-oamii-can-help/
Engr. AJ Jama
Oamii Digital Marketing Agency
+1 561-228-4111
email us here
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December 18, 2020, 19:00 GMT
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