Common essential functions

Jack Pete

I would like to pose a question on your employer's forum. Does anyone have a list of common essential functions one could select from when writing a job description? Essential functions that would be common to many different jobs such as prompt and regular attendance, ability to work well with others as a team, good personal hygiene, 20/30 vision or better, etc.

Hatchetman

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 01-11-02 AT 06:35PM (CST)[/font][p]I think your term "essential functions" may be a little off base. Rather than "functions", you can say "essential expectations." Satisfactory attendance, "demonstrated" ability to work well with others, proper dress (in compliance with company requirements) are, in most cases, behaviors, not performance. In away though, these types of behaviros are generally considered inherent in any job. The important aspect is to demonstrate by holding all employees accountable on a consistent basis, based upon circumstances.

Since expectations among employers, and even among supervisors with the same company, do differ, it really is more appropriate for specific expectations to be developed rather than one a "size-fits-all-employers" approach. Except maybe for "attendance", with the other types of expectations, once the employee is on the job, you may need to further refine them -- in esssence, "provide notice" --if problems start appearing. For attendance if you have a point system or use "x number of days" as a standard with forms of discipline for days in excess leading to discharge, then that would be sufficient. With all of these expectations, it's not only having such a statement expressing each one, but in practice consistently enforcing compliance with them, when needed, holding employees accountable.

Your use of a "medical standard", "20/30 vision", will need to have a documented medical basis unless there is something in the law under which this position falls that actually sets a specific standard like that. You just can't say "you have to have 20/30 vision" without establishing it as a "Bonfa Fide Occupational Qualification"; otherwise you will wind up discriminating against those individuals who are "visually impaired" even though the impairment does not the job.