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Validation Studies

After reviewing our Standards page, you may wish to consider a validation study for your agency. The step towards standards can be a difficult one requiring much deliberation. It may represent a significant financial investment for an agency or community; it may initially appear challenging due to a history of litigation or perhaps the presence of a collective bargaining agreement; it frankly may just appear impractical given your current difficulties in filling vacant positions!

Recent Developments

Regardless of your current situation or perception of your situation there are a few things you should be aware of:

The absence of current standards does not hold you to never having them;
Despites assertions to the contrary, an agency can implement mandatory standards post hiring;
No agency should even consider grandfathering anybody;
Every agency is advised to give its applicant(s) ample notice in any changes to hiring requirements and it is equally advised to give its incumbent workforce time to meet changes in retention requirements.

We have a seen a recent increase in agencies choosing to adopt standards; and they have been motivated by a number of reasons:

Legislation mandating programs or standards;
A willingness by health insurers or risk management pools to support physical readiness programming;
A general willingness on the part of command and or administration to acknowledge the necessity of standards.

Please be advised: we continue to support voluntary programming for agencies and we continue to feel that standards will ensure that everybody meets a minimum level of physical readiness.

Validation Options

Generally we offer two options for agencies seeking standards:

Construct/Criterion Validation

This type of validation provides maximum validity and therefore maximum defensibility. We can provide assurance that the tests and standards defined are job related and are specific to the agency. Agency personnel are tested to determine the physical demands of the job and the required physical ability levels to meet those demands are identified.

Transportability Validation

This type of validation provides reasonable assurance that the recommended tests and standards are job related. The courts have recognized Transportability Studies as a valid means of establishing job requirements. In this approach, actual physical testing of agency personnel is not conducted. The results of job analysis data from the client agency is compared to job rating data for similar agencies with construct/criterion validated tests based on physical testing of personnel.

Next Stop?

If you or agency is interested in a validation study, please click on this document: Validation Options.

Finally, consider that a validation study is really just the beginning of your work - and hopefully our relationship together. Quite frankly, the mechanics of a validation study are simple - and don't let any other vendors tell you otherwise! The challenge once the study is done is 'How can we maximize the benefit(s) to our agency personnel and to the agency/community as a whole.'

If you would like to discuss your validation options please contact us.

Validation Studies

Recent Developments

Validation Options

Next Stop?

WYMSY