JAN Newsletter - February 2024

Question

One of our food service workers has progressive vision loss and is having difficulty performing their job. We want to explore solutions with the employee but are not sure what options exist. Can you help?

Answer

There are many ways to make a kitchen more accessible to employees with vision impairments. JAN provides an overview of accommodation ideas to explore in this article: Accommodating Cooks with Low Vision, and, if more ideas are needed, JAN can provide customized ideas through one-on-one consultation.

Many of the inquiries JAN Sensory Team Consultants field related to assistive technology (AT) and low vision involve computer access. AT accommodation solutions range from external screen magnification to screen reading software to built-in operating system features. For more accommodation ideas and related resources, read: Choosing Among Options for Computer Users with Low Vision.

• Accommodating Cooks with Low Vision
• Accommodating Employees with Keratoconus
• Accommodation and Compliance Series: Assistive Technology
• Accommodation and Compliance Series: Low Vision
• Choosing Among Options for Computer Users with Low Vision
• Magnifiers, Screen Readers, and Braille – Oh My!
• Raising Awareness of Digital Accessibility During Low Vision/AMD Awareness Month
• Screen Reader Troubleshooting
• Visual Disabilities in the Workplace and the ADA

Why Communication is Key to the Accommodation Process

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for most accommodation situations but one factor that remains consistent across every scenario, disability, and industry is the absolute importance of good communication. JAN recently released a new resource, “Why Communication is Key to the Accommodation Process,” that offers practical tips to help ensure good communication among all parties involved in the job accommodation process.

Read the Communication is Key Article

JAN Webcast Series Library: A Source for Training Resources

Looking for training resources on job accommodations, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and other disability employment topics? The JAN Webcast Series Library offers past JAN webcasts that may be used to train employees (e.g., human resources personnel, management, reasonable accommodation coordinators, etc.) and service providers on relevant job accommodation and ADA compliance topics, or for personal learning and development.

View the Webcast Series Library

Making AI Hiring Tools More Inclusive: A National Online Dialogue

Now through March 11, you can take part in a national online dialogue about making artificial intelligence (AI)–enabled hiring tools more inclusive for people with disabilities, including those who may also be members of other protected classes (e.g., race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, genetic information). Hosted by the ODEP-funded Partnership on Employment & Accessible Technology (PEAT), the online dialogue will gather public input to help PEAT and its collaborators build a profile on inclusive hiring based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s AI Risk Management Framework. The dialogue is the latest in a series of public-facing events managed by ODEP’s ePolicyWorks initiative.

Join PEAT’s Online Dialogue

Small Business Toolkit Now Available

The Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) has released a new Small Business Toolkit. The toolkit provides valuable information to help small businesses meet their workforce needs by hiring workers with disabilities. Small businesses can use this toolkit to create a more disability-inclusive workforce and learn about the many advantages of workplace inclusion, such as expanded business reach, reduced turnover, and insight into a large and growing customer base. Explore strategies to recruit, hire, retain, and advance disabled employees and access information on financial incentives, the benefits and advantages for small businesses, reasonable accommodations, and more.

Access the Small Business Toolkit