P2 Group Occupational Therapists work in collaboration with managers to assess the Inherent Requirements of each role within an organisation. It is important to clearly define and document the Inherent Requirements (functional and cognitive / behavioural) of each role. Once this is in place, an employees’ ability to meet the demands of the role can be assessed.

For use in pre-employment assessments:

Many employers use pre-employment assessments as part of their recruitment process. The purpose of pre-employment assessments is to ensure that potential employees do not have an impairment or disability which will either prevent them meeting the Inherent Requirements of their prospective duties, or which may expose them to further injury because the duties are beyond their capacities.

Pre-employment assessments are not discriminatory if an employer seeks to tests an applicant’s ability to carry out the reasonable and genuine requirements of the employment. For this reason an employer should ensure that position descriptions are up to date. In addition to this, Inherent Requirements must be determined in the circumstance of each job.

The Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Victoria) contains an exception relating to special services or facilities which provides that an employer may discriminate against a prospective employee on the basis of an impairment, if that person would require special services or facilities to meet the Inherent Requirements of the position, and it would not be reasonable in the circumstances for those special services or facilities to be provided.

The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 states that it will not be unlawful for an employer to discriminate against an employee on the basis of a disability if the person, because of his or her disability, would not be able to carry out the Inherent Requirements of the position, or if in order to carry out the Inherent Requirements of the position, services or facilities are required and the provision of such would impose an unjustifiable hardship on the employer.

For use in managing injured workers and gauging when they can return to pre-injury duties:

The documentation created by P2 Group can be used as a baseline to measure any changes in the worker’s capacity. In the event of an injury, the history of assessments can be used to measure how well the employee is recovering and if they are able to meet the demands of their pre-injury duties.

This documentation trail is important when assessing an injured worker’s capacity to meet the Inherent Requirements of their pre-injury role and in identifying suitable duties that coincide with the worker’s capacity.

For use in managing an ageing workforce:

Ageing employees who may not be able to perform their role safely, should be regularly assessed against the Inherent Requirements of the Job.  Section 22 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (Victoria) outlines the duties of employers to monitor health and conditions of their employees.  An employer must, so far as is reasonably practicable monitor the health of employees of the employer.  An employer must, so far as is reasonably practicable  (a) keep information and records relating to the health and safety of employees of the employer; and  (b) employ or engage persons who are suitably qualified in relation to occupational health and safety to provide advice to the employer concerning the health and safety of employees of the employer.

Click here to contact a P2 Group consultant for further information.