Marriott HIring Blind Reservations Agents?

Question

I had called the 800 number for marriott reservation and while I was asking a question I thought I heard a dog bark and i asked the agent and he told me it was his seeing eye dog and that he was visiually impaired and then continued to make the reservations and I told him I would call back. I was a little unconfortable with the idea of him making my reservations (I am not againsnt the blind having jobs it was just surprising to me).

How does Marriott teach them to make reservations if they cant see the computer? How do I know if they are making the reservations correctly?

Answer 1

My friend used to work for Marriott and he's totally blind.

There is a computer program called Jaws. It allows blind people to use a computer. Jaws speaks to them, I've seen it in action because my best friend is blind (not the friend mentioned above). She uses the Internet, shops online, studies at the pc, does everything that you and I can do, without having to see a thing. She's 100% blind in both eyes.

Don't worry, Marriott (or anyone) wouldn't hire incompetent people. The blind rep knew what he was doing. ; ^)

Answer 2

There are a couple of methods that blind of sight-impaired people use to "read" the computer screen. One of the most common is a screen reader. If the person can see some, high contrast large screens are sometimes used.

How do I know if they are making the reservations correctly? - The same way you make sure anyone taking your reservations are making them correctly, have them read it back when completed, have them e-mail or fax the confirmation, etc.

The person is in that job because they were able to show they can do that job. More often than not, it is harder for a disabled person to get the job because they have to prove they are able to do what it is assumed (and sometimes incorrectly) people without the disability can do. Many sighted individuals make mistakes when taking reservations for example.

Answer 3

The other answers are very good . .. additionally, the majority of blind people are legally blind (meaning they have some vision). My mother is legally blind - she uses both a voice reader and a program that make the words on her screen extremly large (4 or 5 characters max on the screen). She worked for a large hospital- in the transcription department and was able to adapt very well. I hope you see this as an opportunity to realize that most people with set backs are still able to function (at a high level) in our society.