Physical employment standards
Research Project
- Start Date:
- 1 January, 2006
- Project Status:
- Active
DSTO, together with the University of Wollongong, is developing a set of performance standards to assist Defence in accurately assessing the ability of an individual to perform a given role.
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- Dragging an injured airman
Many organisations rely on outdated methods to assess an individual’s physical ability to perform a role.
Such methods can lead to individuals either being unnecessarily excluded from a role, or selected for a position for which they are unsuited.
By establishing standards that are truly representative of military tasks, Defence can make an accurate assessment of a person's physical capacity to perform a job, regardless of trade classification, rank, age or sex.
Physical Employment Standards Centre of Expertise
In 2009, DSTO and the University of Wollongong established the Physical Employment Standards (PES) Centre of Expertise.
The aim of the PES work is to identify appropriate physical tests for continued employment in all Defence employment groups in order to select personnel best suited for the demands of that employment group.
Better personnel selections mean improved performance outcomes, reduced injuries, increased availability for operations and training and reduced costs for health care and compensation.
Developing the standards
In developing the set of employment standards, DSTO scientists and researchers from the University of Wollongong are working through each of the employment categories within Defence and:
- Undertaking task observation and analysis to identify key employment category tasks to be used for physical employment standards development;
- Developing employment category-specific physical employment tests and protocols; and
- Refining and verifying these tests and protocols on a representative sample.
Timeline:
|
Timeframe |
Employment Categories Reviewed |
|
June 2006 - August 2007 |
Army Artillery (RAA) |
|
September 2007 - June 2009 |
Army Transport Corps (RACT)
|
|
July 2009 - December 2010 |
Army Armoured Corps (RAAC)
Army Engineers (RAE) |
|
November 2010 - December 2011 |
Army Artillery (RAA) continued |
|
October 2011 - December 2012 |
Army Artillery (RAA) continued |
|
January 2013 - June 2016 |
Remaining Air Force employment categories as well as developing a generic seagoing standard for Navy. |
|
July 2016 - June 2019 |
Remaining Navy employment categories. |