27 January 2021 In Inclusion By Chloé Freslon

How to build an inclusive company for deaf and hard-of-hearing employees

How many hard-of-hearing or deaf people are employed in Canada?

Finding statistics on which all the associations agree is rather difficult!

Véronique Leduc, professor at UQAM’s Department of Social and Public Communication, gives the following figures: in Canada, data show that 40% of adults aged 20 to 79 have a mild or more severe hearing loss, and between 4% and 12% identify themselves as deaf or hard of hearing (Canadian Association of the Deaf 2012; Institut de la Statistique du Québec 2013; Caron 2003; Pinsonneault and Bergevin 2006; Statistics Canada, 2016).

Kim Auclair, a web communications consultant, is deaf and hears with a cochlear implant. In recent years, she has become a spokesperson for people with communication challenges similar to her own. She explains their reality on the job market and offers concrete solutions to employers.

How to adapt work for deaf people

Kim explains that many hard-of-hearing or deaf people don’t mention it on their CVs for fear of the obstacles it might create for an employer. For the same reasons, they often don’t ask for accommodations, forcing the employee to adapt to the workplace, instead of the other way around.

And once on the job, the deaf or hard-of-hearing person isn’t necessarily going to be more forthcoming. Instead, they’ll find ways of getting around situations, such as

asking colleagues to take a phone call for them
asking colleagues to come to business meetings with her for fear of not understanding 100% of conversations.

The anxiety of not being 100% competent at work is there, and yet a majority of adapted companies say they are satisfied with their staff living with deafness.

The arrival of telecommuting has meant a big adjustment for Kim, but it has also brought a few advantages. Kim prefers video calls to phone calls, but before March 2020, imposing video was tricky, today it’s the norm.

How to accommodate deaf employees at work

According to Kim Auclair, many companies are afraid that accommodation solutions for the deaf and hard-of-hearing are too costly and require too many changes. However, there are several solutions that cost absolutely nothing and bring a lot to the table.

The Association des personnes avec une déficience de l’audition (APDA) digital guide 10 bonnes pratiques pour rendre votre entreprise accessible aux personnes malentendantes offers the following advice to employers:
– Raise employee awareness of hearing impairment to encourage working together.
– Focus on written communication. For example, people with accents (like me) may require more energy to understand.
– If oral communication is mandatory, Kim recommends making an effort to articulate, not hesitating to use gestures to support your words, being open to repeating or rephrasing the question to make it simpler.
– Pay attention to the volume of music played in the office. When the volume is high, hearing-impaired people have to concentrate harder to follow discussions. To help them, avoid playing music too loudly.
– If you use audible notifications, try to replace them with lights to signal a communication – the telephone comes to mind – this will also limit noise pollution in the office.
– If communication takes place over the phone, send a written summary of the exchange you’ve had to make sure things are understood on both sides. This is part of good project management practice anyway.
– If you leave an audio message on an answering machine, bear in mind that this may not be optimal for everyone. You can supplement your message with a written e-mail.
– Enable subtitles on videos and send summary PDFs after a webinar, for example.

Organizing inclusive online meetings

If you’re about to organize an online meeting, here are some things to keep in mind:
– Send the content in advance by e-mail: the objectives of the meeting, the why, the agenda, when do we want the person to speak, etc. Note that this is recommended for any meeting with any person. The result will be a productive and efficient meeting!
– Pay attention to lighting. If the person is lip-reading, they’ll need to see your lips, and your facial expressions will also help them understand.
– Pay attention to noise. As mentioned above, adjacent noises can interfere with the person’s comprehension. Pay attention, for example, to keyboard clicks. Take notes in a notebook, for example.
– For the Q&A session, ask to receive questions via the chat option and not verbally.

Kim reminds you that it’s up to each individual to decide whether to identify themselves as deaf or hard-of-hearing. Some will speak sign language, others won’t. She advises employers to bear in mind that people are multidimensional, and that it’s best just to ask employees how the workplace and communications can be adapted to simplify their lives.

Employers, don’t forget that adaptations aren’t just for the deaf or hard-of-hearing, they’re for everyone, because they’re good, inclusive communication practices.