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Occupational Requirements Survey

Respondent Reference Guide

Overview

ORS captures durations for some physical demands and environmental conditions based on the ranges below:

Duration Category

Overall range

8-Hour day

40-Hour week

Seldom

Up to 2%

Less than 10 minutes

Less than 45 minutes

Occasionally

2% up to 1/3

10 minutes up to 2 1/2 hours

45 minutes up to 13 hours

Frequently

1/3 up to 2/3

2 1/2 hours up to 5 1/2 hours

13 hours up to 3 1/2 days

Constantly

2/3 or more

5 1/2 hours or more

3 1/2 days or more

For each of the selected jobs, please provide the following information:

Job Information & Requirements

For each of the jobs we will be talking about today, we will need the following information:

      • The number of full-time and part-time workers
      • The typical or average work schedule (e.g., 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week)
      • The below hiring requirements, when applicable:
        • Educational requirements (e.g., high school diploma, college degree)
        • Other special training requirements (e.g., certificates, licenses, vocational training)
        • Related, professional work experience

Job Function and Tasks

      • What are the most important things this job does for your organization?
      • What is the purpose of this job?
      • What do workers in this job do in a regular day?

Supervisory Information

      • Does this job supervise anyone?
      • Is their supervisor in the area where they typically work?
      • How does their supervisor check the quality of their work?

Cognitive Demands

      • How fast work is performed?
      • How often must this job verbally interact with others?
      • How closely the job is supervised?

Physical Demands

Pushing/pulling - Do workers push or pull anything that requires a significant amount of force?

Nurse pushing patient in wheelchair Worker pulling cart of boxes

Reaching/manipulation - Do any tasks require gross manipulation (e.g., seizing, holding, grasping, turning, or otherwise working with the hand)?

Woman holding books Woman inspecting an item while working in a warehouse gross manipulation trimming shrubs

Do any of tasks require fine manipulation? Fine manipulation includes touching, picking, pinching, keyboarding, or otherwise working primarily with fingers rather than with the whole hand or arm, as in gross manipulation.

Technician fixing computers Lab technician using a pipette

Postural - Do any tasks requires them to use low postures (e.g., stooping, crouching, kneeling, or crawling)?

A maid stooping Crouching photographer Man crouching while lowering a jack at the rear of a travel trailer

Environmental Conditions

Do workers encounter any of the following while performing the job?

      • Outdoors
      • Extreme Heat (non-weather related)
      • Extreme Cold (non-weather related)
      • Wetness
      • Humidity
      • Heavy Vibration
      • Hazardous Contaminants*
      • Proximity to Moving Mechanical Parts*
      • High, Exposed Places*
      • Noise Intensity Level*

* Is personal protective equipment (PPE) used (e.g., ear plugs, hearing protection, safety harnesses)?