Kartunet - One of the biggest barriers for visually impaired individuals in entering the formal job market is not a lack of competence, but rather an inaccessible selection process. Many visually impaired applicants fail at the initial stages because they are presented with psychological or competency tests that rely on visual analysis, such as guessing 3D shapes or reading graphs.
However, Law Number 8 of 2016 concerning Persons with Disabilities, Article 47, explicitly mandates employers to provide tools, test formats appropriate to the disability, and allow flexibility in completion time. To implement this mandate, HR teams need to understand the right recruitment and test modification strategies to objectively and fairly assess the potential of visually impaired applicants.
1. Information Gathering During Registration (Needs Assessment)
The most crucial step for HR must be taken from the registration stage. Recruitment forms (especially online ones) must include questions about the applicant's disability category and the assistive devices they use. This information is vital for HR to determine what modifications are needed before the test day arrives. With this mapping, HR will no longer mistakenly provide visual image-based questions to visually impaired applicants.
2. Modification of Time and Number of Questions (Quantitative Adjustment)
Visually impaired applicants take tests using computers with the aid of screen reader software (screen reader). It must be understood that reading with the sense of hearing via a screen reader takes longer than reading directly with the sense of sight. Therefore, HR can provide accommodations in the form of:
Extra Time: Providing additional time for completion, generally 50% of the normal total time given to non-disabled applicants.
Reduction in Number of Questions: HR can reduce the quantity of questions without diminishing their competency weight. For example, if sighted applicants must answer five questions for one competency, visually impaired applicants only need to complete one or two questions representing the same competency.
3. Substitution of Visual Questions (Qualitative Adjustment)
Screen reader applications can only read text and numbers; they cannot interpret images, complex tables, or graphs. If the test material contains visual analysis questions (e.g., spatial/3D shape psychometric tests), HR must perform a substitution. This substitution can involve replacing image-based questions with narrative logic questions of equivalent weight, or converting the images into descriptive narratives that can be analyzed by visually impaired individuals.
4. Test Format Accessibility and Assistance (In-Person/Offline)
If competency or psychological tests must be conducted in-person (face-to-face at the office), HR can take the following steps:
Computer-Based Tests: Provide questions in MS Word document format (not scanned image PDFs) so applicants can read them independently. HR can allow applicants to bring their personal laptops equipped with screen reader applications, or HR can provide office computers with screen reader applications like NVDA (free) installed.
Provision of an Assistant (Reader/Writer): If questions are only available in print format (hard copy) and cannot be digitized, HR must provide an assisting staff member. The assistant's role is purely to read the questions clearly and write down the answers provided by the visually impaired applicant without offering intervention or answer hints.
Conclusion
Modifying competency and psychological tests for visually impaired applicants is not an attempt to lower company qualification standards or grant unfair "privileges." Instead, this modification is an adjustment (reasonable accommodation) to remove technical barriers, ensuring visually impaired applicants have an equal footing to demonstrate their intelligence, logic, and pure competence to the selectors. (DPM)
References:
Central Executive Board of the Indonesian Blind Association (DPP Pertuni). Guide to Recruitment & Placement of Visually Impaired Workers.
Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 8 of 2016 concerning Persons with Disabilities.