[acb-hsp] FW: [Geb-grads] Fwd: [ABA-3D] Monster.com agreement w/NFBannounced

Thu Jan 31 11:48:36 EST 2013

I wonder if this will apply to the USAJOBS site as well, which is
powered by Monster.  Also, I notice that the NFB and the state of MA got
their cut of the settlement as well.

Andy

From: acb-hsp-bounces at acb.org [mailto:acb-hsp-bounces at acb.org] On Behalf
Of Peter Altschul
Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2013 5:03 AM
To: employment at acb.org; 'Discussion list for ACB human service
professionals'
Subject: [acb-hsp] FW: [Geb-grads] Fwd: [ABA-3D] Monster.com agreement
w/NFBannounced

________________________________

	FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT:

	January 30, 2013
Christopher Loh (AGO)

(617) 727-2543

Kristen Gugliotta (Monster)

(978) 461-8089

Chris Danielsen (NFB)

(410) 262-1281

	MONSTER.COM FIRST IN INDUSTRY TO MAKE WEBSITE ACCESSIBLE FOR
BLIND USERS 

	Effort a Result of Agreement Between Monster Worldwide and the
Attorney General's Office and National Federation of the Blind; First
Job Search Website to Be Fully Accessible

	BOSTON - The popular job search website Monster.com will be the
first job search and recruitment website in the industry to provide job
seekers who are blind with full and equal access to all of its products
and services including mobile applications, Attorney General Martha
Coakley, Monster Worldwide, Inc. and the National Federation of the
Blind (NFB) announced today.

	The announcement is the result of an agreement with the AG's
Office and the NFB and provides meaningful benefit to individuals
nationwide who are blind or visually impaired, including more than
35,000 residents in Massachusetts. As part of the agreement, Monster
will contribute $50,000 to the Commonwealth that will be used to fund
the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind's (MCB) job internship
program. Monster will also make a $50,000 contribution to the NFB and
serve as the title sponsor of the NFB's annual convention in 2013. 

	"Unemployment and underemployment in the blind community are
significant problems and given the extent to which computers and the
Internet have become integral to our daily lives, it is essential that
websites are accessible to everyone," AG Coakley said. "We are pleased
to have worked with the NFB and Monster to make the company's valuable
products and services accessible and to provide better employment
opportunities to job seekers who are blind, visually impaired or have
other print disabilities such as dyslexia.  We are hopeful that with the
ability to access written information in an audible text to speech
format, these users will now have access to jobs, and better jobs, than
ever before.  We want technology to improve people's lives, not create
obstacles or barriers."  

	"Over the past year, a team at Monster has been working closely
with teams from the National Federation of the Blind and the
Massachusetts Attorney General's Office to enhance our Monster.com
website in a way that will provide more opportunities for blind job
seekers to find jobs," said Mark Conway, Chief Information Officer,
Monster Worldwide. "Although portions of our site were already
accessible, we all agreed we could do more. Based on the work of these
teams, the Monster.com site will be enhanced to make its website and
mobile applications accessible to blind job seekers. This has been an
enormous undertaking and is an exciting accomplishment for which we can
all be proud."

	"The National Federation of the Blind works for full and equal
access by blind Americans to all forms of digital information," said Dr.
Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind. "Access
to digital information and applications is critical to success in the
twenty-first century in all areas of life, including searching and
applying for career opportunities. We are therefore pleased that Monster
is making this commitment to full and equal access to its website and
mobile applications. We also thank the Attorney General of Massachusetts
for being such a strong partner and advocate for accessibility."

	"We are excited to partner with Monster and the National
Federation of the Blind to provide access to job opportunities available
to individuals who are blind," said Commissioner Janet LaBreck of the
Massachusetts Commission for the Blind. "The MCB internship program
enables individuals the opportunity to access early work experience.
Utilizing accessible technology available on Monster's website to
conduct a job search ensures that individuals who are blind can
independently and successfully perform the same tasks as other job
seeking candidates." 

	To make its website and mobile applications accessible to job
seekers who are blind, Monster is  making them compatible with
innovative technology called screen access software that renders
on-screen information into Braille or speech so that blind individuals
can use keyboard commands to access the same information as sighted
users. 

	In accordance with the agreement, Monster is in the process of
making its desktop and mobile websites fully and equally accessible and
will have its mobile applications accessible within two years. Monster
has also ensured the templates employers use to post job advertisements
on its site will be fully and equally accessible within six months. 

	Monster will also train its customer service representatives to
assist users who are blind and will establish a standing committee to
oversee implementation of the agreement and other issues related to
accessibility in the future. In addition, Monster has agreed to work
with the NFB to encourage higher education programs to incorporate
accessible design and assistive technology in to their core curricula.  

	            The agreement is the most recent result of
collaboration between AG Coakley's Office and the NFB. Past
collaborations have included making Apple's iTunes services and
Cardtronics ATMs fully and equally accessible to the blind.

	            State and federal laws not only prohibit disparate
treatment of individuals with disabilities in employment and housing,
but also require that all businesses operating places of public
accommodation provide people with disablities with full and equal
enjoyment of their goods, services, and facilities.

	Monster.com is the worldwide leader in connecting people to jobs
and provides a full array of job seeking, career management, recruitment
and talent management products and services in more than 40 countries.

	This matter was handled by Assistant Attorney General Genevieve
C. Nadeau and Paralegal Bethany Brown of Attorney General Coakley's
Civil Rights Division, and Assistant Attorney General Maura Healey,
Chief of Attorney General Coakley's Public Protection and Advocacy
Bureau.   

	##########

	Sherri L. Rita, J.D.

	Program Specialist

	Commission on Disability Rights (CDR)-Mail Stop 11.0

	American Bar Association (ABA)

	740 15th St. NW

	Washington, DC  20005-1022

	T:  202.662.1572

	F:  202.442.3439

	sherri.rita at americanbar.org <mailto:sherri.rita at americanbar.org>

	http://www.americanbar.org/groups/disabilityrights.html
<http://www.americanbar.org/groups/disabilityrights.html> 

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