Internet editorial

Citation

Finch, E. (1999), "Internet editorial", Facilities, Vol. 17 No. 5/6. https://doi.org/10.1108/f.1999.06917eag.001

Internet editorial

Accessibility is a hot topic for facilities managers throughout the World. How do our facilities serve the needs of people with disabilities? We are only just waking up to the discriminatory effects of architectural and communication barriers; our failure to make modifications to existing facilities; the effect of segregation; and relegation of disabled people to lesser services. Emerging legislation addresses the need to provide access to facilities for all ­ irrespective of disability. Whether you are in Taiwan, the USA or Australia, the impact of accessibility legislation is beginning to be felt. Just in the USA there are 43 million Americans who have one or more physical or mental disabilities, and this number is increasing as the population as a whole is growing older. In this Internet editorial we look at the driving force behind accessibility issues and review some of the Websites on this subject.

ADA legislation in the USA

Perhaps the most longstanding legislation relating to accessibility in the USA is the Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 (ADA). Of particular interest to the facilities manager is Part 36 ­ Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability by Public Accommodations and in Commercial Facilities. This Act involves:

1. a.

   Prohibition of discrimination. No individual shall be discriminated against on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of any place of public accommodation by any private entity who owns, leases (or leases to), or operates a place of public accommodation.

2. b.

   Landlord and tenant responsibilities. Both the landlord who owns the building that houses a place of public accommodation and the tenant who owns or operates the place of public accommodation are public accommodations subject to the requirements of this part. As between the parties, allocation of responsibility for complying with the obligations of this part may be determined by lease or other contract.

The Act became enforcable for any facility designed and constructed for first occupancy after 26 January 1993.

The full text of this can be found at the Centre for Information and Law Policy[1] Website, run from Chicago. Another Website is the Consumer Law Page[2], run by the Alexander Law Firm in California. This site describes the costs resulting from implementing the Act for employers, giving the average costs of "accommodations" as follows:

• •

  no cost to employee (31 per cent);

• •

  between $1 and $50 (19 per cent);

• •

  between $50 and $500 (19 per cent);

• •

  between $500 and $1,000 (19 per cent); <

• •

  between $1,000 and $5,000 (11 per cent); and

• •

  more than $5,000 (1 per cent).

Less than one quarter of employees with disabilities need "accommodations", and nearly 70 per cent of such "accommodations" cost less than $500 per disabled employee.

Another detailed site is the Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter of IFMA Website[3]. This has a detailed questions-and-answer section. It includes discussions on legal interpretations. For example, under the ADA Act, employers are expected to provide "reasonable accommodation". What is reasonable? Reasonable accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or the work environment that will enable a qualified applicant or employee with a disability to participate in the application process or to perform essential job functions. A useful set of Internet links is provided by the ISU Architecture Technology Laboratory[4], at Iowa State University.

DDA in the UK

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 is being introduced as a phased programme in the UK. The first stage, dealing with the first rights of access to goods, facilities, services and premises, was introduced in December 1996. The timetable for the second rights of access has yet to be determined. Up-to-date information on this can be found at theCentre for Accessible Environments (CAE) Website[5]. The CAE is a registered charity that "is committed to the provision of buildings and spaces that are safe, convenient and enjoyable to use by everyone including disabled and older people".

ESCAP in Asia and the Pacific

The United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons, 1983-1992, heightened awareness about the marginalisation of people with disabilities, particularly those in the developing countries. This led to the declaration of the period 1993-2002 as the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). The mandates of the Commission include specific recognition of the urgent need to remove the physical barriers to the full participation and equality of people with disabilities. The most useful site for information pertaining to this can be found at the Institute on Independent Living Website[6]. This site includes a vast repository of online reports relating to accessibility implementation in Asia and Pacific.

Specific Websites

Looking beyond national and regional policies, there are some Websites that provide informative information for designers and opportunities for disabled employees. Some of these are described below.

National Center on Accessibility

The National Center on Accessibility (NCA)[7] is a program of Indiana University's Department of Recreation and Park Administration, in co-operation with the US National Park Service, Office on Accessibility. This site has one or two noteworthy design case studies, including the "Swimming Pool Accessibility Project". A useful executive summary is available online.

Ability Website

The Ability Website[8] is an example of a growing number of sites being used by people with disability to interact for the purposes of work. The Ability Website states its mission as: "to demonstrate to employers and the public that IT and the Internet are tools for equality in the workplace. Too many valuable skills are overlooked and wasted, employers and the public should 'see the ability not the disability'. To work with the computer industry to show them that everyone can benefit when access for people with disabilities is considered in product design". The site provides virtual chat, classifieds and an Internet resource guide.

Future developments

For an issue as dynamic as accessibility, the Internet comes into its own. It is possible to track the implementation programmes throughout the world. We can also see the rapid diffusion of ideas through the publication of articles on the Internet. This will help to raise our understanding of design in relation to accessibility. Hopefully, with this knowledge, facilities managers will be able to apply the philosophy of non-handicapping environments more effectively.

Edward Finch

Notes

1. 1.

   http://www.law.vill.edu/legis/ada/arg-toc.htm

2. 2.

   http://consumerlawpage.com/article/disact.shtml

3. 3.

   http://dfwifma.org/adafacts.txt

4. 4.

   http://www.public.iastate.edu/~sbilling/ada.html

5. 5.

   http://www.cae.org.uk/

6. 6.

   http://www.independentliving.org/Library/Library_ Contents1.html

7. 7.

   http://www.indiana.edu/~nca/

8. 8.

   http://www.ability.org.uk/