As it celebrates National Disability Employment Awareness Month in October, LinkedIn has announced a number of new updates to make its service more accessible to its users.

First up: LinkedIn is launching auto-captions for video, another way to squeeze in an extra dose of inclusivity with LinkedIn content.
Now, when you upload a video clip, you'll have the option to turn on auto-captions. Auto-captions can be posted as soon as they are ready, or you'll be able to review them before they're live.

Auto captions could be immensely helpful, not only for those who are hard of hearing, but also for all those watching video in 'sound off' conditions. Therefore, the practical utility here is huge, and it's satisfying to note that LinkedIn takes the next step forward in activating the feature through its video clips.

Apart from the other factors, users of LinkedIn will now also be able to turn on high contrast when viewing videos on the LinkedIn application, thus adjusting the colors to increase accessibility to those affected by low vision or other visual disabilities.

LinkedIn reports that the number of job postings featuring 'accessibility' in the job title has leaped to such an enormous extent that it is now shifting to give more visibility to accessibility roles within the app.

As reported by LinkedIn:

If you work in the accessibility industry, you can now choose a standardized title in accessibility, such as 'accessibility designer,' 'chief accessibility officer,' or 'accessibility engineer' that matches this work. This is helpful as standardized job titles help you get discovered for opportunities, and it becomes much easier to find opportunities that match your skills. "
That will give the accessibility experts more of a chance to be recognized for that expertise in an app.

LinkedIn is also introducing alt-text functionality in Campaign Manager, so that, among other things, advertisers will be able to add text descriptions to image ads. It has also added new LinkedIn Learning courses focused on accessibility in various roles.

The internet age has brought so many marvellous opportunities to be grasped for all people. The work-from-home shift again in recent days also boosted this, and coupled with new features like these, we are continuously advancing towards a better future where people from all walks of life are able to pursue their passions and careers, with fewer limits.

It is for this reason why such updates are important as well, because they will have wide-ranging implications for millions of people.