Fitness for duty testing is a valuable component of a comprehensive safety program and creates fertile ground for safety professionals to conduct critical analyses of essential job demands and methods to reduce risk factors associated with each job. Fitness for duty (FFD) testing can be conducted legally and effectively to identify whether or not an individual is able to perform the essential physical functions of a particular job prior to job placement. This process involves assessing a person's functional capabilities and identifying any existing physical deficits in order to determine whether or not a person can safely perform the essential functions of a job.
FFD testing must be designed to meet the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other acts such as ADEA to avoid disparate discrimination of protected classes as required by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Protected classes technically include all women, all people 40 years of age and older, and anyone with a real or perceived disability. Therefore, it is critical that the safety professional fully understands current laws and guidelines related to federal acts that protect the employee from disparate discrimination in the hiring and return to work process.
FFD tests can identify persons who have cardiovascular and/or musculoskeletal disorders and who may be exposed to imminent risk of injury. It can also be used to establish a pre-injury baseline profile of employees to aid in the rehabilitation should they become injured and to provide accurate accommodations required for people who may have disabilities protected by the ADA. In order to help ensure that a FFD testing program will be legally defensible and effective for its intended for purpose, the safety professional should be involved in the validation process to determine the essential demands of each job are correctly identified and measured.
