Comparing Human and Automated Document Remediation: Cost, Speed, and Compliance

Document accessibility is a growing concern for organizations in both the public and private sectors. Making PDFs, Word files, and other documents accessible to people with disabilities is not just a technical challenge – it’s also a legal requirement and a budgetary consideration. Traditionally, organizations have relied on human experts to remediate documents (adding tags, alt text, proper reading order, etc.) to meet accessibility standards like WCAG and Section 508. However, new solutions like Scribe for Documents (SFD) offer an automated alternative.

This article compares the current costs of human document remediation with the benefits of using SFD, focusing on key factors such as cost, speed, scalability, accuracy, and compliance. It also addresses the different obligations in public vs. private sectors and why an automated approach can be a cost-effective, efficient alternative to traditional human remediation.

The High Cost of Human Document Remediation

Manual remediation is expensive. Industry data shows that hiring professionals to make documents accessible can cost between $5 and $25 per page, depending on complexity (Venngage). That adds up quickly – for example, remediating a collection of 10,000 pages could cost anywhere from $50,000 to $250,000 in direct fees. Even at bulk rates of $3–$5 per page, costs remain much higher than automated solutions (EqualWeb).

In addition to per-page fees, labor hours drive up cost. Manually fixing one PDF page (adding tags, alt text, checking reading order, etc.) can take around 30 minutes per page on average. Using that estimate, 10,000 pages of PDFs would require about 5,000 hours of work. If an accessibility specialist charges roughly $50 per hour, the labor expense alone is about $250,000 for 10,000 pages.

Case in point: A university or government agency with thousands of legacy PDFs faces a daunting expense if using only human remediators. One analysis noted that remediating 10,000 pages manually could cost a quarter of a million dollars in labor and take months of effort.

Speed and Scalability: Human Effort vs. Automation

Beyond cost, speed is a major limitation of human remediation. With each document requiring individual attention, organizations often discover that making a large repository accessible is a slow, drawn-out process. A single remediator working full-time could take years to finish tens of thousands of pages.

In contrast, Scribe for Documents (SFD) is designed for near-instant turnaround on document remediation. This cloud-based tool uses AI to automatically add tags, recognize text via OCR, generate image descriptions, and output accessible versions of documents on demand. The speed difference is dramatic: SFD can process a document in seconds, versus the half-hour or more a human might spend. At scale, the advantage compounds.

According to Pneuma Solutions, SFD’s provider, the system can handle “hundreds of thousands of documents in days or hours – not months or years.” This means what might take years of manual work can be accomplished in a weekend using an automated approach.

Accuracy and Consistency of Remediation

Another critical factor is the quality and accuracy of remediation. Trained accessibility professionals can produce highly accessible documents, but manual work is subject to human error and inconsistency. SFD ensures uniform tagging, consistent reading order, and accurate alt text every time.

Additionally, SFD outputs documents in multiple formats to ensure compatibility with assistive technologies:

• Accessible PDFs – Fully tagged for screen readers.
• HTML – Ensures mobile & web accessibility.
• ePub – For e-readers and mobile devices.
• Braille-Ready Files (BRF) – For Braille displays.
• Large Print – For individuals with low vision.

Compliance: Public Sector Requirements vs Private Sector Needs

Accessibility compliance is mandatory for many organizations.

Public Sector

Title II of the ADA requires state and local governments to make all digital documents accessible. Federal agencies must comply with Section 508, which mandates WCAG 2.1 AA compliance.

Private Sector

ADA Title III applies to businesses, meaning companies like Amazon, Home Depot, and Lowe’s are legally responsible for ensuring their product manuals and other documents are accessible.

Legal consequences include:

• Fines up to $75,000 for first-time ADA violations.
• Lawsuits averaging $25,000+ per case.
• EU companies facing European Accessibility Act fines by June 2025.

Cost-Effectiveness of SFD

Conclusion: Compliance Without Breaking the Budget

As 2025 compliance deadlines approach, organizations cannot afford slow, costly manual remediation. SFD provides a scalable, affordable, and fast alternative that ensures compliance with ADA, Title II, EAA, ACA, and WCAG 2.1 standards.

With increasing legal pressure, organizations must act now. **Scribe for Documents is the only practical solution for large-scale accessibility.**