Health and Safety Ontario (HSO) and the four health and safety associations operating under the HSO banner have teamed up with BrowseAloud to provide an online text-to-speech solution to ensure that its websites are accessible to all online visitors.

BrowseAloud provides online reading support and assists those individuals who experience literacy challenges, learning difficulties such as dyslexia, mild visual impairments or who speak English as a second language.

The software reads website content aloud and highlights each word as it is spoken, providing an audio-visual reinforcement for the end user.  In addition to its core functionality, BrowseAloud also provides a dual colour highlighting and text magnification tool, a talking dictionary, a translator, a screen masking feature and MP3 maker.

"WSPS is commited to putting health and safety solutions within reach of every employer and employee in Ontario.  Ensuring that the informaiton and resources on our website are accessible to all users is a critical step in the fulfilment of this promise," says Elizabeth Mills, President & CEO, Workplace Safety & Prevention Services (WSPS).

In Canada, 15% of the overall population have some form of dyslexia, and 24% of the population require online reading support.  The integration of BrowseAloud makes the WSPS website accessible to this audience and ensures an equal level of services to all users.

The software is free of charge to the end user and requirees a one-stop download through the BrowseAloud site.

View the full press release from BrowseAloud and WSPS.