Employers often use pre-employment testing to screen job applicants. Those who use post-offer employment testing, or POET, achieve an average of 47% fewer workers’ comp injuries and three times higher retention than those who don’t use POET.

The purpose of a POET is to determine if the candidate you want to hire can safely perform the physical demands and essential functions of the job. This is not the same as a pre-employment physical, which is a medical examination. Medical exams may only determine overall fitness, but are not specific to the tasks of the job for which a candidate is being considered.

In keeping with ADA and EEOC requirements, POET can be administered only after you have made a formal job offer to an individual. Similar to drug testing, employment is contingent on successfully passing the POET assessment.

POET testing criteria are based on the same job demand analysis metrics used to create the job description. That ensures the post-offer employment test for that particular job is 100% consistent, from one candidate to another, and from one job site to another. This is especially important for employers with multiple regional or national facilities.