To ask dyslexic team member to put a note on her email signature???

As a dyslexic I would not have a problem with that being written on the bottom of my emails. But I appreciate not every dyslexic would feel the same. I would also say that asking a dyslexic to proof read their own word does not work (I can re-read something over and over, and not spot the obvious errors, until it's just been emailed!!!! Very annoying!), we also often can't tell if grammar checks are making mistakes, which they do!

Even people without dyslexia make mistakes like this. One of my colleagues with an English degree, first class honours often makes mistakes in her emails!

As her manager you have a legal duty to provide her with tools to assist, given the problems that she has with emails to customers etc.

A simple email auto signature with her agreement is commonplace. Most people in corporates nowadays (especially in public sector where I work) don't try to hide the fact they have dyslexia especially if the culture is openly supportive of people with disabilities, which is the decent thing to do.

She could also add a link to the British Dyslexia Society website to her autosignature where there are tip sheets on there to help people understand how it affects people day to day.

https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/resources

A simple Google query brings up information about software tools:

Top Software for Email Composition

• Read&Write (by Texthelp): A versatile toolbar that integrates with Windows, Mac, and Google Chrome. It offers word prediction, spell checkers, and text-to-speech to read emails aloud to catch errors before sending.
• Grammarly: A popular AI-powered tool that provides real-time, advanced spelling, grammar, and tone suggestions to improve writing clarity.
• Ginger Software: Specifically designed to assist with dyslexia, it provides rephrasing suggestions, spell checking, and text-to-speech features.
• Ghotit Real Writer: Specialized software that helps with writing and spelling by understanding context, which is beneficial for dyslexic users.
• Helperbird: A browser extension (Chrome, Edge, Firefox) that provides tools like word prediction, text-to-speech, and dyslexia-friendly fonts to assist with writing in web-based email clients.

Speech-to-Text (Dictation) Tools
These allow you to speak your email instead of typing it:

• Dragon NaturallySpeaking/Dragon Anywhere: A high-accuracy dictation software that learns your voice and vocabulary, allowing for faster email composition.
• Google Docs Voice Typing: A free tool that can be used to draft emails.
• Voicy: A tool that works directly in Gmail, Outlook, and Word to convert speech to text with automatic punctuation.

Dyslexia-Friendly Formatting

• Dyslexie Font: A font designed with unique character shapes to prevent confusion.
• OpenDyslexic: An open-source font designed to improve readability.
• Browser Extensions (e.g., Helperbird): These can be used to change the background color or font on web-based email platforms to reduce visual stress.

Key Features to Look For

• Word Prediction: Suggests words as you type to reduce the burden of spelling.
• Text-to-Speech: Reads your draft back to you to check for flow and errors.
• Spell Checkers: Designed for phonetic spellers to find the correct word.

I'm dyslexic and also wondered about doing this but I work in a job where I'm meant to have above average language skills so I'm scared to! ( ai to read back my reports helps but in my work we can't use it for client data yet).
I find speech to text options don't help me because I need to write to formulate my ideas.
But let her know about emails. I often write mine in hurry and then get so much wrong if I'm stressed!
It's great that she's open about it.
The best tip I had was to read back my own emails backwards. That way I don't read I wanted to have written and it pick up the word errors

Ai is becoming more helpful though and I'm using copilot now in the last month

Honestly, I think it says more about the person receiving the email if they judge the person based on spelling or grammar mistakes. Surely the whole point of communication is to convey a message so the recipient understands what is said.

Where i work emails form part of the official audit trail of correspondence, mistakes can lead to major issues. Written quality has to be high - its almost legal in nature, the nuances in the language are critical. The software really doesn't pick up things. Constant errors of the type op describes would mean someone probably wouldn't make it past probation. I do know of some people with severe dyslexia, all have a tagline on their email.

Op has been pretty tolerant & supportive of this employee

I would prefer an email with a couple of errors rather than a AI cut and paste email.

In some areas a personalised service with an individual who remembers your name and situation is worth far more than a perfect email.

As a customer I am more bothered about the persons competence at whatever I am engaging them to do. If they are designing my signage and adverts or proof reading my book I may take issue. If they are making me a wooden table or cutting my hair the grammar and spelling in the email is irrelevant (assuming I understand what is written).

I know what you mean. I get emails from a colleague with some errors in them and they feel more personal. They are also nice and short. Another colleague gets AI to write them and I rarely read them because they are so long and are worded like a policy document.

She can copy and paste her emails into AI and it will proof read them for her, or she can just ask it to write them for her using verbal prompts.

TBH if I got an email with a couple of spelling errors in I’d just be happy it was a human emailing me and not an automated response. I think the email sing off is also potentially a good idea. I’m dyslexic and I have to send texts to parents as part of my job (maths tutor), I’ve had a few comments along the lines of “I’m glad it’s maths you teach and not English” which can be a bit frustrating. For serious emails where I need to get my spelling correct I run them through copilot then have the computer read it aloud to me. This takes a bit more time but is worth it.

The post isn't about that, you've obviously read it so you know it's about ways to help someone with dyslexia in the workplace.

At work I occasionally get emails from someone who does have wording along those lines in the email signature. He writes as an individual so his own choice

There is not a hope in hell I'd declare my dyslexia in an email footer. And I'd be seriously pissed off if that was my managers suggestion to me. Tread carefully. You may cause a great deal of upset - there is absolutely no reason to have it declared on a document that could be forwarded to heaven knows where.

‘straitjacket’, OP.

can you use speech to text software for her?

then agree Grammey and reading text to speech software for her to have it read back.

Im dyslexic and I wouldn’t mind putting a footnote on there but know lots who would.

@Coolwaterscoolcool I don't agree, I think it reflects really poorly on a business to have typos or grammar errors. I have disregarded services if there is an error in the website or ad. If a shop has an error in signage I also would not want to shop there.

If I was in direct communication with a person and they had a disclaimer saying they are prone to errors due to dyslexia I would understand and overlook this, but if it is representing the company as a whole it should be accurate, they need a system to catch errors if someone has difficulty.

So much AI now to assist that she shouldn’t be making mistakes as much. Maybe she needs someone to explain software that can help. There’s also software that be downloaded to her laptop, I know a colleague uses dragon. Never seen anyone use such a signature.

As a dyslexic person, I would be NOT be happy to have it broadcasted on my email footer. It wouldn't sit right with me. I would, however, really appreicate a manager who suggested tools or solutions that would help without being condescending.

We’re not allowed to use the likes of Grammerly or Google Translate (for email chains forwarded to us from our Belgian colleagues who sometimes don’t email back and forth between themselves in English). The reason is that we are data from sharing internal emails with an external company, who can do whatever they want with that data. OP may not want to share her company’s data, and it may be illegal if this colleague is breaking GDPR laws in relation to their clients, depending on what data she puts through the external tool.

Antidote is the dyslexia software we use. But also any LLM will sort the emails.

Exactly, and OP reply on the issue seems to highlight that they know the set up isn’t right.

There's this website where you can create a document that allows you to add what support you might need which could be helpful, allowance for spelling but also copy of meeting notes, etc etc - www.axspassport.com/

Well, she’s here, asking for advice, isn’t she? Whereas you’re just responding rudely for no good reason.

My husband is severely dyslexic - diagnosed in his late teens - and he has something on his email signature along the lines of ‘ the author of this email is dyslexic. Expect big ideas but lots of typos’ which was recommended to him by someone in HR. Before he added this he often got snidey remarks about his spelling/grammar etc but that has all pretty much stopped now

Sorry if it’s been mentioned @FusionChefGeoff but make sure you are exploring access to work options with her around funding for things like software and other adaptations she may need.

I think it’s really positive you are taking these steps to accommodate her.

I don’t think it’s a bad thing to suggest an email footer so long as it’s a suggestion made on the basis that it’s completely her choice whether or not she adds one and anything that is added to that footer is again completely her choice in terms of wording that she is a 100% comfortable with.

workplace adjustments can often come out of two way conversations and assessments where you both figure out the needs of the person based on their role and the nature of the business so in terms of having a discussion about “emails” in general and suggesting a signature as part of that process wouldn’t be inappropriate, particularly when it’s designed to get her to place where she can work independently.

this wouldn’t and shouldn’t necessarily negate the need for better software though so I would still definitely explore that too

A self-employed trainee is something I have never heard of. Surely a trainee is someone who by definition is under the supervision of an employer for training and assessment purposes?

I'm a nurse manager who leads a community team and I have nurse with dyslexia in my team.
As a manager it's my responsibility to ensure those staff members have the adequate software in the office and on their laptops. That they have received sufficient training and they also get extra time to complete reposts.
All very basic reasonable adjustments.
Making someone proclaim their dyslexia on email doesn't sit right with me and I'm sure it wouldn't be received well at a tribunal

I had a colleague (at a large corporate) who had a note at the end of her email that stated she was dyslexic and if anything wasn’t clear to just give her a call. I thought it was a great idea, and if I’d had more confidence I would have put something similar at the end of my email signature. I think my problem is I don’t particularly like highlighting one of my weaknesses to other people (but thats my pride speaking and it’s not very helpful).