At Mercer | Mettl, our commitment to accessibility is not just a legal obligation but a moral imperative. We firmly believe that everyone, regardless of their ability, should have equal access to our platform and services. We are actively working to ensure that our platforms are designed to be accessible to most candidates. This includes testing devices such as mainstream screen readers, speech recognition software to screen magnification technologies, keyboard-only interaction, and much more while preserving the integrity and usability of our assessments.
1. What is accessibility, and why is it important?
Web accessibility is an inclusive approach to removing any barriers that may prevent people with physical disabilities or temporary limitations from interacting with or accessing content and services available digitally.
The importance of accessibility lies in enabling most individuals to actively participate, interact and contribute to the digital world.
2. Who is it needed for?
Web accessibility is needed for everyone, regardless of their abilities or disabilities. It ensures that individuals with visual impairments can access content using screen readers and access some of the interface elements; individuals with motor disabilities can navigate websites using assistive technologies, etc. Additionally, accessibility benefits older adults, individuals with temporary disabilities, and those with situational limitations. By implementing accessibility compliance, assessments become more inclusive, providing equal access and a seamless user experience for most users.
3. How can it be achieved?
Accessibility can be accomplished through several key practices. Adhering to accessibility guidelines such as WCAG 2.1, Section 508, and EN 301 549 ensures compliance and inclusivity in digital products and services. These standards cover visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, language, learning, and neurological disabilities. They require websites, software, telecommunications, and hardware to be accessible to people who are differently abled. By addressing these issues, assessments are made friendly for individuals by allowing them to access and interact with content effectively.
Global standards:
WCAG 2.1 is a global framework that promotes inclusivity in digital products and services. It covers a wide range of disabilities, including visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, language, learning, and neurological disabilities.
Section 508:
In the United States, Section 508 is a law that requires federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. It covers software, websites, telecommunications, and hardware.
EN 301 549:
This is a European standard that allows European organizations to measure the accessibility of websites, electronic documents, and non-web software, such as mobile apps, against specific criteria. It aims to ensure that all individuals, including those with disabilities, can access and use these digital resources.
4. What is VPAT?
The Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) report is a document that measures how accessible a product is. It provides a snapshot of the accessibility compliance of a given product/service. This document can be used to determine whether a product or service fulfills the needs of the users in a given context.
For example:
- The ability to zoom helps people who may have difficulty in reading small fonts.
- The ability to narrate, such as screen reader support, helps people who may not be able to read/view the text properly.
- Adding alternative text for images helps explain what an image shows for people facing challenges in seeing these images properly.
- Structured content layout ensures headings, text boxes, buttons, pop-ups etc., have the correct color contrast and padding.
- Keyboard operable interactive elements make sure all major elements on a screen can be controlled using just the keyboard.
Mercer | Mettl has received VPAT for WCAG 2.1 AA (global and most common standard for accessibility), EU accessibility standards (EN 301 549), and US Accessibility Law (Section 508) for our new candidate interface that was launched early this year.
A third-party organization tested our platform across hundreds of screens to see how user-friendly our platform was to someone with varied abilities. We went through three stringent rounds of testing of the entire test-taking experience for various question types.
Additional details can be found in the VPAT report.
For any questions, concerns or accessibility testing details,
please reach out to us and we will be happy to answer them to the best of our abilities.