Prior to the offer of employment, the ADA prohibits all disability-related inquires and medical examination, even if they are related to the job. A). Physical Agility Test: Measure s an individual’s ability to perform actual or simulated job tasks. B). Physical Fitness Test: Measures an individual’s performance of physical tasks.

Conditional job offer contingent on meeting the essential functions of the job. Three outcomes of the test: Met, not met or ADA accommodations/medical hold.

Testing Existing Uninjured Employees. This test can be used to ensure existing employees’ continued fitness to perform physically demanding job tasks. It is typically administered for safety-sensitive positions as part of an annual fitness-for-duty certification.

Testing Existing Injured Employees should be used when

• An employee is returning to work after an absence.
• An employee is returning to work post-injury with a modified duty or full duty medical release.
• Employer policy provides transitional work to focus on Stay at Work rather than Return to Work.
• Evidence is needed to address inconsistent behaviors.
• Medical providers need objective information to compare post-offer to post-injury conditions to provide rehab goals that will reduce work-related deficits and identify when Maximum Functional Improvement is achieved.

A modified version of the POET after the medical hold has been released by the physician.

A job description or JD is a written narrative that describes the general tasks, or other related duties, and responsibilities of a position. It may specify the functionary to whom the position reports, specifications such as the qualifications or skills needed by the person in the job, information about the equipment, tools and work aids used, working conditions, physical demands, and a salary range.

A job safety analysis (JSA) is a procedure which helps integrate accepted safety and health principles and practices into a particular task or job operation. In a JSA, each basic step of the job is to identify potential hazards and to recommend the safest way to do the job. Other terms used to describe this procedure are job hazard analysis (JHA) and job hazard breakdown.

A Physical Demands Analysis (PDA) is a systematic procedure to quantify, and evaluate all of the physical and environmental demand components of all essential and nonessential tasks of a job. A PDA is the “cornerstone” of the analytical process used to determine compatibility between a worker and a specific job.