Job
For purposes of job analysis, a "job" is:
•A position usually designated with a title or job classification
•That involves an ongoing service or collection of work functions
•Which comprise the worker's entire set of responsibilities
•And is usually performed by a group of workers who have the same job title
Jobs come in various shapes and sizes. Some are very broad, encompassing a wide array of responsibilities and tasks. Others are very narrow in scope, or highly specialized.
A worker may progress within a job according to incremental levels of proficiency, experience or simply time on the job. But regardless of how the organization chooses to advance a worker within the job position, the scope of the job is still defined by all of the tasks that the worker must perform.
Position of Job in the Job Analysis Hierarchy
Specialized Jobs
For example, the mechanical maintenance technician position may involve several categories or specialty areas: turbine mechanic, welder, heavy machinery operator, rigger. Is it one job, or is it several specialized jobs? Here's a suggested rule:
•If a category is performed by only certain job holders with special skills, treat the category as an individual job.
•If the individual occupying the job position are responsible for all of the categories, even though they may tend to specialize in some of the functions or tasks, consider the categories as a subset, such as a responsibility area, of one job position.
Levels of Proficiency
For example, a maintenance technician may have three levels" helper (level 1), apprentice (level 2), and journeyman (level 3). For purposes of job analysis, do not consider these levels as separate jobs, or as subsets of a job unless each level is associated with distinctly different tasks that do not significantly overlap.
Example Jobs
Here are some examples of jobs, as applied to the conduct of job analysis:
•Electrical Maintenance Technician
•Instruments and Controls Technician
•Site Supervisor
•Chemical Engineer
•Clerk
•Commercial Pilot
•Control Room Operator
•Outside Operator
•Mechanical Maintenance Technician
•Ground Crew Maintenance Technician
•Automobile Mechanic
•Salesperson
•Chef
•Assembly Line Worker
