Oh S***! There's a New Accessibility Law and I'm Not Ready!

You have a 50% chance of acquiring a disability by age 65. Learn why accessibility is not a legal chore, but a personal necessity for every developer.

#1about 2 minutes

Why making your products accessible is so important

Over 20% of the global population has a disability, making accessibility a crucial consideration for your future self, friends, and family.

#2about 3 minutes

A brief overview of European accessibility legislation

The European Accessibility Act builds on previous laws to cover private digital products and services, referencing the EN 301 549 standard and WCAG.

#3about 4 minutes

Start by understanding how people with disabilities use the web

Before writing any code, learn about the diverse assistive technologies people use to navigate the web, such as joysticks and braille displays.

#4about 5 minutes

How to perform essential keyboard accessibility testing

Test for common keyboard navigation issues like unreachable elements, keyboard traps, and missing focus indicators by using semantic HTML and avoiding `outline: none`.

#5about 2 minutes

Using automated tools to find common accessibility issues

Leverage browser extensions like Axe DevTools or Wave to automatically detect 30-50% of accessibility problems and get guidance on how to fix them.

#6about 6 minutes

Getting started with screen readers and ARIA attributes

Learn the basics of screen reader testing to understand when to use ARIA attributes like `aria-label`, `aria-expanded`, and `role="alert"` for better user feedback.

#7about 2 minutes

Integrating accessibility checks into your development pipeline

Automate accessibility checks further by adding linting rules, Storybook plugins, and end-to-end tests with tools like Playwright into your CI/CD pipeline.

#8about 2 minutes