AI-Mediated Hiring and the Job Search of Blind and Low-Vision Individuals

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Main Authors: Imteyaz, Kashif, Qiushi, Liang, Bart, Yakov, Das, Maitraye, Savage, Saiph
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Imteyaz, Kashif
Qiushi
Liang
Bart, Yakov
Das, Maitraye
Savage, Saiph
author_facet Imteyaz, Kashif
Qiushi
Liang
Bart, Yakov
Das, Maitraye
Savage, Saiph
contents Blind and low-vision (BLV) individuals face high unemployment rates. The job search is becoming harder as more employers use AI-driven systems to screen resumes before a human ever sees them. Such AI systems could inadvertently further disadvantage BLV job seekers, introducing additional barriers to an already difficult process. We lack understanding of BLV job seekers' experiences in today's AI-driven hiring ecosystem. Without such understanding, we risk designing technologies that create new systemic barriers for BLV job seekers rather than providing support. To this end, we conducted interviews with 17 BLV job seekers and analyzed their experiences with AI-powered hiring systems. We found that AI hiring systems misrepresented their professional identities and created dehumanizing interactions. To level the playing field, BLV job seekers used strategic counter-navigation: they deployed their own tools to bypass algorithmic screening and built peer networks to share AI literacy. They also practiced 'strategic refusal', choosing to avoid certain AI systems to regain their agency. Unlike prior work that frames job search as an individualistic activity, or one focused on being compliant with employer needs, we use the interdependence framework to argue that for BLV people, job search is an interdependent process. We offer design recommendations for AI-mediated tools that center disability perspectives and support interdependencies in job search.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_11884
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle AI-Mediated Hiring and the Job Search of Blind and Low-Vision Individuals
Imteyaz, Kashif
Qiushi
Liang
Bart, Yakov
Das, Maitraye
Savage, Saiph
Human-Computer Interaction
Blind and low-vision (BLV) individuals face high unemployment rates. The job search is becoming harder as more employers use AI-driven systems to screen resumes before a human ever sees them. Such AI systems could inadvertently further disadvantage BLV job seekers, introducing additional barriers to an already difficult process. We lack understanding of BLV job seekers' experiences in today's AI-driven hiring ecosystem. Without such understanding, we risk designing technologies that create new systemic barriers for BLV job seekers rather than providing support. To this end, we conducted interviews with 17 BLV job seekers and analyzed their experiences with AI-powered hiring systems. We found that AI hiring systems misrepresented their professional identities and created dehumanizing interactions. To level the playing field, BLV job seekers used strategic counter-navigation: they deployed their own tools to bypass algorithmic screening and built peer networks to share AI literacy. They also practiced 'strategic refusal', choosing to avoid certain AI systems to regain their agency. Unlike prior work that frames job search as an individualistic activity, or one focused on being compliant with employer needs, we use the interdependence framework to argue that for BLV people, job search is an interdependent process. We offer design recommendations for AI-mediated tools that center disability perspectives and support interdependencies in job search.
title AI-Mediated Hiring and the Job Search of Blind and Low-Vision Individuals
topic Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.11884