Making the Right Hiring Decisions
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Transcript of Making the Right Hiring Decisions
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7/30/2019 Making the Right Hiring Decisions
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OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH NEWSLETTER
Gain a Competitive Advantagewith the Correct Hiring Decision
Matt Kent: 0488 061 529 [email protected]
Safe, healthy workplaces support strong
business performance stemming from:
Lower insurance premiums
Reduced staff turnover
Increased productivity
Lower hiring costs
Better employee morale
Working is conclusively good for ones health, and
for the health of ones family and society. In fact, ithas been demonstrated that being unable to work
has the equivalent health effects of smoking 10
packets of cigarettes per day (Ross 1995).
The Problem Facing Employers and Workers
Understanding this, regulators and many employers
now emphasise Workplace Safety as a core value,
yet in 2008 and 2009 over 130,000 work-related
injuries and illnesses were reported to NSW Work
Cover, with almost 43,000 resulting in more than 5
days off work, and around 9000 resulting in
permanent disability. The cost to employers and the
community of these injuries is staggering with total
payments of the system increasing to over 2.5 billion
in 2008 and 2009.
Working Towards an Effective Solution
There are many aspects to injury prevention
including ergonomics, job design and safety
procedures, however one often-overlooked factor is
that there is a gap between the physical ability of aperson to perform a job and the demands of a job.
Sporting clubs at even the most basic level will fitness
test players prior to returning to play; yet employers
frequently employ people manifestly unstainable for
the job.
There is increasing evidence that properly
administered pre-employment physical tests are one
of the best ways to minimise the risks associated with
a bad hiring decision.
Effective Pre-Employment Testing
1 The testing must be objective and well
documented. To ensure defensibility of the hiring
decision. If tested, it is essential that hiring is
objective, equitable and legally defensible.
2 Testing must be customised.
It is essential that testing is relevant to the job being
tested. Different jobs have different demands
associated with them and if the testing is not
relevant to these then it is not likely to be effective.
3 Testing should follow the guidelines derived
from available scientific evidence.
4 The testing interview is as important as the
test. In a study conducted on 594 security staff
published in the Journal of Occupational Medicine
in 2010 found that a questionaire tool used at the
pre-employment stage was predictive of future
absense and work restriction.
5 Testing must be conducted by suitably
qualified staff. Relevant findings are often subtle. An
inexperienced assessor can invalidate good testing
protocols. Physical testing for example requires
someone with knowledge and skills in Physical
Capacity Evaluation and Orthopedic Assessment
with knowledge of injury and pathology.
Our mission at Advanced Physiotherapy is to be the
Hunters leading provider of Occupational HealthServices and our pre-employment screening service
is up to date, staffed by qualified medical and allied
health personnel.
To contact our Occupational Health Team, please call or email: