Post-Offer Employment Testing
A post-offer employment test, or POET, is a job-specific physical assessment, not a generic screening. It helps confirm whether a new hire can safely perform the job’s essential physical functions before they begin work.
What Is POET?
What Is Post-Offer Employment Testing?
The goal of post-offer employment testing is to confirm that a new hire can physically perform the essential functions of the job they’ve been offered. It’s sometimes referred to as a pre-employment physical test. For compliance purposes, the test should be job-specific, based on the role’s essential functions, and administered consistently to candidates applying for the same position.
Post-offer employment testing matters most for physically demanding roles. Jobs that involve lifting, carrying, repetitive motion, or sustained physical effort can lead to injury if the physical demands don’t match the person doing the work.
Safer Hiring Decisions
Improve hiring decisions with objective, job-specific data.
Lower Injury Risk
Reduce workplace injury risk by confirming physical readiness before a new hire begins work.
Stronger Workforce
Support a safer, more productive workforce while helping reduce workers’ compensation costs and turnover over time.
How It Works
What a POET Includes
Every POET starts with understanding the job itself, not a generic checklist. We look at the tasks, physical demands, and day-to-day reality of the role, then build the testing process around that. A licensed physical or occupational therapist evaluates the candidate’s ability to perform the job’s essential physical tasks.
Here’s what the process can include:
- A job site analysis and detailed job description, built from an initial discussion about which roles need testing.
- Selection and validation of test tasks with current employees, so the test reflects how the job is actually performed.
- Testing, data collection, and follow-up, with a report on whether the applicant’s abilities meet the job’s demands.
Together, these steps help turn hiring decisions from educated guesses into job-based decisions employers can stand behind.
What Makes Our POET Process Different
Built Around the Actual Job
We start with a real job site analysis, looking at what the role actually demands, and build a test around those specific tasks so the results mean something.
Validated With Real Employees
Before a POET goes live, we validate it against current employees performing the job today, then revise as needed. That means the test reflects reality, not a guess at what the job requires, and holds up if it’s ever questioned.
A Clear, Actionable Report
Once testing wraps, you get a straightforward report that tells you whether the applicant’s abilities match the job’s physical demands. That gives you what you need to make a confident, defensible hiring decision instead of finding out the hard way after they start.
Ready-Made POETs Available
If you already have a post-offer employment test for a role, we can serve as the provider and run it for you, so you don’t have to start from scratch.
Why a Physical Test for Job Readiness Matters
Hiring someone into a physically demanding role without confirming they can safely perform the work creates risk for the employee, the team, and your organization.
Post-offer employment testing closes that gap before it becomes a problem, giving you objective data to support safer hiring decisions from day one.
Common Questions
Post-Offer Employment Testing FAQs
They’re closely related. Both are used to confirm a candidate can physically handle a job before they start, sometimes as part of the same process.
The report shows exactly where the gap is between the applicant’s abilities and the job’s demands, so you and the candidate both know where things stand.
Yes. Ivy Health can serve as the provider for a previously developed POET, so you don’t have to start over.
Reach out to learn more, and we’ll walk you through rates and next steps for your team.
Ready to Get Started?
Hire With Confidence
Reach out to learn more about post-offer employment testing for your team, including rates and how it works.