There are many consequences to not making your website accessible to people with disabilities.
Many companies and government agencies are being sued for not making their websites, mobile apps, and online documents accessible to people with disabilities. Take, for example, the most recent lawsuit filed against Sweetgreen. The Washington Post reported on March 23 that a class action lawsuit was filed against the DC-based salad chain whose core values “embody our culture, spirit, and dedication to doing what’s right.” According to the class action complaint, both plaintiffs made the company aware of accessibility issues with its online ordering system but the company refused to make the usability of the system a priority.
We are not surprised to see lawsuits like this being filed. Nor should you be. In fact, several leading companies and agencies have had such lawsuits filed against them in recent history. We should expect them to continue for a couple reasons:
One: A large part of our population is reaching an age at which sight and hearing issues are becoming more common—myself included. That alone is not unusual; what is new is that this segment of the aging population has become accustomed to Internet and mobile technologies. In fact, just today I made a dinner reservation on a restaurant website that will not be accessible to me when my eyesight fails. We expect this to change as more people speak up and the law demands accessibility.
Two: Accessibility is the right thing to do. Are you listening, Sweetgreen? Many leading CEOs and other industry leaders recognize this and with a concerted effort can produce a double boost to the bottom line—doing what is right while expanding their market audience.
Now, I am no law expert, so I don’t know what will happen in the Sweetgreen case. But I do know from my company’s working with websites and online documents that there is a gray area between accessibility (the law) and usability (how things work for people with visual and/or auditory disabilities). It is my hope that the importance of usability, as compared with accessibility, is not lost in the gray area of this case.
EEI Communications remediates documents every day. And we realize that these documents will ultimately be used by real people. It is critical in our remediation process that we make these documents not only compliant according to the law but usable to the individual—that is, allowing them to fully comprehend the information.
Greg McDonough is the CEO of EEI Communications. To read more about Greg, click here.
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