ADA Accessibility · 2020-07-29 · does provide incentive for lawyers to specialize and engage in...

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ADA Accessibilityfor the Hospitality World


What You’ll Learn Today1. History of the American Disabilities Act

2. Additional Laws and regulations

3. Legal precedence

4. What to do if you receive a demand letter

5. What Accessibility levels do you really need

6. Unlocking potential with ADA Accessibility


History of the ADA and Disabilities lawsCivil Rights Act – 1964

• prohibited discrimination on the basis of race, religion and national originVoting Rights Act – 1965

• Prohibits racial discrimination in voting.

Civil Rights Act 1968 • Prohibits discrimination against minorities for housing.

Rehabilitation Act – 1973

• Section 504 addressed discrimination against people with disabilities. • Section 508 was added in 1986 to further enforce for us gov contractors.

Americans with Disabilities Act – 1990

• Imposes accessibility requirements for public places. • Title III – defines public accommodations… hotels, restaurants, parks,

government buildings, stores, etc.

The act does not specifically call out websites, but Title III of the ADA has been interpreted by the US courts to apply to websites.


History of WCAG and other regulationsWCAG – Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines published by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) under the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium)*

WCAG 2.0 was published in Dec 2008 and became the ISO standard in Oct 2012.

WCAG 2.1 became a W3C recommendation in 2018. It contains more requirement for mobile accessibility.

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 – Updated in 2017

It is compatible with WCAG 2.0, which it extends with a further 17 success criteriaThis section is mostly related to government contractors.

*The World Wide Web Consortium is the main international standards organization for the World Wide Web. Founded in 1994

The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990

When we hear ADA we all think about ensuring those with disabilities can access our establishments. We imagine wheelchair ramps, rails, elevators.

But ADA no longer applies to only brick and mortar practices. It is now part of our digital landscape how we deliver our services and products to our customers online.

Digital accessibility is good hospitality

The Web is Not Accessible for EveryoneFor the 15% of people who have some kind of disability, the Internet can be a confusing place to navigate

26.9 million of U.S. adults experience vision loss and may not be able to see your web content accurately

Legal Precedence Excerpt:

Like thousands of other businesses in the United States, the 10-room hotel on East Stevens Road has been sued because it hasn’t fully complied with the 1990 law that requires public places — hotels, restaurants and shops — to be accessible to people with disabilities.

But Avanti isn’t being accused of failing to build a wheelchair ramp or install handrails — common charges in the scores of ADA lawsuits in years past.

Instead, the lawsuit contends that the hotel’s website can’t be used by people who have problems seeing or hearing.

Lawsuits on the Rise

ADA Litigation:

The attorneys' fees provision of Title III does provide incentive for lawyers to specialize and engage in serial ADA litigation in some states… California, New York, Florida, Hawaii and Illinois.

As the CHLA pointed out in a recent newsletter one such lawyer has been labeled a “Vexacious Litigant” in California and barred from filing any more lawsuits.

July 24, 2020 - The San Francisco 49ers have reached a $24 million settlement with fans who claim that Levi’s Stadium has thousand of non-compliant access barriers that prevent those with mobility disabilities from enjoying the game. www.topclassactions.com

ADA Title III Web Accessibility Lawsuits by State

There has been a steep rise in Accessibility Lawsuits in the last few years.

Some states have more favorable laws for preditory lawsuits….which is why you see dramatically more cases in NY, FL and CA.

Why Your Business Needs a Compliance Solution

Reputable companies are being served class-action lawsuits and forced to pay millions in settlement costs

and legal fees. National sites are covering these lawsuits posing a huge reputation challenges to follow.

Harvard University, The Latest

Higher Education Institution

To Be Mandated To Provide

Video Closed Captioning

Beyoncé Was Sued Over Her

Website Violating the

Americans with Disabilities Act

Supreme Court hands victory

to blind man who sued

Domino’s over site accessibility.

ADA Digital Accessibility Lawsuits: A Growing Concern in Hospitality.


Benefits of A Compliant Website

As your site becomes optimized for accessibility features such as

screen readers, you will notice improved SEO rankings. This also

results in lower paid search advertising costs.

Reputable companies have been subject to compliance lawsuits for not adhering to

ADA accessible design requirements.

By incorporating compliance solutions, you can improve

the user experience, improve customer loyalty, and

improve your reputation.

Improve SEOAvoid Legal

IssuesUser

Loyality

It is simply the right thing to do!

With the growth of the Internet, our

society needs to provide the same

accommodations for people with

disabilities in the digital world the

same way we did in the physical

world.

Unlock the Business Potential30% of working professionals have a disability and The total spending power of working-age adults with disabilities is nearly $500 Billion


What is a Demand Letter?

What to Do When You Receive a Demand Letter1. Don't Blow It Off. You and your business can suffer

consequences from failing to answer a demand letter in a timely fashion. Web Accessibility is here to stay!

2. Assess the Validity of the Arguments3. Understand the Motives4. Determine Whether or Not You Need a Lawyer5. Respond Formally, Factually, and Professionally6. Get Verification of Receipt7. Determine the proper steps to remedy.


Strategies for Protecting yourself: Avoiding / Defending Litigation

• Create and maintain accessible mobile applications and websites

• Accessibility Statements • Define Accessiility Policy• Create future Procedures for updating


How do I know if I am providing the right level of Accessibility?While it is difficult to be “compliant” with a law that does not spell out Web sites specifically….following the current WCAG 2.0 guidelines will provide the necessary accessibility. 1. It is the right thing to do2. It will unlock the access and spending

potential for people with disabilities. 3. Implementing the requirements of the

WCAG 2.0 guidelines will help ward off predatory lawsuits.


Meeting the guidelines for Accessibility will dramatically reduce risk

By meeting the guidelines for the WCAG 2.0 criteria you are providing the proper baseline for accessibility

It is similar to the marketing for things like the steering wheel lock. Just complying with the guidelines will not necessarily make your company or website exempt from predatory lawsuits or demand letters, but if your site is providing the necessary accessibility features, the possibility is significantly reduced


Title III of the ADA Act is still the main guideline.* There are 3 levels of the WCAG 2.0 guidelines• A (Lowest) – 25 criteria must be met

• Change Colors, Resize text, contrast, Background, Audio control, etc.

• AA (Midrange) – An additional 13 more criteria • Captions, Page Read, Audio Description, text spacing, etc.

• AAA (Highest) – 23 more criteria.

The WCAG does not recommend level AAA conformance as a general policy.

How do you provide the right level of Accessibility

* Title III – defines public accommodations… hotels, restaurants, parks, government buildings, stores, etc, but no specifics for digital. .

Typical Roadmap to Accessibility

• Accessibility lawyer• Digital accessibility expert/auditor• Document efforts• Manual & automated testing• Software -Implement an ADA

specific software like TruAbilities

• Educate Company leaders• Content providers• IT/Engineering• Marketing• Customer service• Web Developers - Make

accessibility improvements to website/mobile app

Get Assistance Train Your Team

What are my options for Accessibility?

There are a lot of consultants that charge to determine if your site complies with the proper Accessibility requirements.

Challenge: Many can identify needs or holes in your site, but do not provide the technology or services to remedy the situation.

Audit Rebuild

There are many website development shops that will happily

rebuild your website to include the accessibility features.

Challenge: This is usually prohibitively expensive and will

require rebuilding or updating as the requirements change or develop over time.

Tools like TruAbilities provide an ADA Accessibility overlay or

widget that is a simple code add-on (much like google analytics) that provides all the required accessibility options and beyond.

Software Overlay

Numbers We Can’t Ignore

Approximately 15% of American adults (37.5 million) aged 18 and over report some trouble hearingSource: Akeaweb |Disability Statistics and 2020 ADA Data

2.3 percent of people in the US (7 million people) report having a visual disabilitySource: National Federation of the Blind | Statistics

30% of working professionals in the United States have a disability.Source: Center for Talent Innovation | Employees with Disabilities

The total spending power of People with Disabilities is $175 Bilion Source: US Dept of Labor

(more then 4 times the spending power of tweens 8-14)

According to a 2010 report from the U.S. Census Bureau, 1 in 5 Americans have a disability.

The WHO estimates that there are 600 million people with disabilities around the world.

Widget Functionality

Accessibility

Tool

22

Needed ADA Product Features

23

Text Controls

Reading Line

Content Alignment

Alt Links

Page Reader

Color & Display

Contrast, Images, & Animation

Cursor Controls

Keyboard Navigation

Site Structure

Virtual Keyboard


Contact Info:

Thank YouTo learn more, visit truabilities.com

Mike [email protected]

ADA Accessibility · 2020-07-29 · does provide incentive for lawyers to specialize and engage in...

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Transcript of ADA Accessibility · 2020-07-29 · does provide incentive for lawyers to specialize and engage in...