Local therapist pitches WorkSteps hiring and fit-for-duty testing to Scurry County
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Summary
Daniel Burke, a local physical therapist, presented WorkSteps post-offer pre-employment and fit-for-duty testing to the Scurry County Commissioners Court as a tool to reduce workplace injuries and hiring risk; he estimated initial job-analysis fees and a per-test charge of about $200 and said the method has a long legal track record.
Daniel Burke, owner of a local physical therapy clinic, told Scurry County Commissioners on Nov. 18 that a WorkSteps testing program could help the county reduce on-the-job injuries and hiring risks by verifying whether job candidates can meet essential physical demands.
Burke described WorkSteps as a job-specific battery of physical and medical checks administered after an offer is made. "Essentially, what we're doing is we're trying to win hiring," he said, explaining that the tests are tailored to tasks such as climbing, shoveling or lifting and are intended to accompany background checks and drug tests.
Why it matters: Commissioners said high turnover and workplace injuries have raised costs and strained services in several county departments. Burke said employers using programs like WorkSteps often see "a 40 to 50 percent reduction in injuries" and lower group-health costs. He also told the court the testing is designed to measure essential job functions and, when implemented consistently, "has never failed in court," meaning it can strengthen an employer’s defensibility in separation or performance disputes.
Burke outlined the rollout and costs. He said a site-specific job analysis is necessary to define test tasks and measures, and gave an example cost profile in the materials: initial job-analysis fieldwork at roughly $600 per half day (about $1,200 per day) and thereafter a per-test fee reported in the discussion at approximately $200 per candidate for a full 45–60 minute evaluation. He added shorter post-employment or transfer tests could be priced lower (the transcript recorded a lower figure in that context).
Commissioners asked about scheduling and turnaround. Burke said clinics aim to provide completed reports by the end of the day or the next day and emphasized the program is not intended as an "impossible test" to block hires but to objectively document an applicant’s capacity for essential tasks.
Several officials expressed interest in reviewing the materials and sample policies before a decision. The court did not take formal action on the proposal at the meeting; commissioners said they would consider the program at a future session.
Clarifying details drawn from the record: Burke emphasized tests are tailored to essential job functions, that initial job analyses require field time and that per-test charges were discussed around $200 in the meeting record (there were two adjacent, inconsistent per-test figures in the transcript; the county staff should confirm final pricing before any contract).
