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Article 14/2022

What is the meaning of the concepts of standardisation, reliability and validity applicable to psychometric testing?

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Standardisation

  • to enable an employee’s scores on a test to be meaningfully interpreted, the test is to be standardised on a population similar to that on which it has been designed to be used (e.g. in respect of 15 FQ+P, people with a wide range of technical, managerial, professional, sales and administrative/clerical roles)
  • such standardisation ensures that the scores obtained in a test can be meaningfully interpreted by referring them to a relevant distribution of scores

Reliability

  • in essence, reliability refers to the requirement that a test must consistently measure a construct
  • reliability is generally assessed using one of two different methods, namely –
  • assessing the stability of the test’s scores over a time period: referred to as temporal stability – it involves determining the extent to which a group of people obtain similar scores on a test when it is administered at two different points in time
  • internal consistency – this method of assessing a test’s reliability involves determining the extent to which, if people score one way on one item (i.e. respond to one item in an introverted way) they will respond in the same way to other items in the test that measure the same construct (i.e. respond in an introverted manner to other test items)

Validity

  • this refers to the requirement that the test should measure what it claims to measure
  • in this regard, there are two approaches, namely:
  • construct validity – by utilising this requirement, the test is required to demonstrate that it correlates with other major tests which measure related constructs but does not correlate with tests that measure different constructs
  • criterion validity – the validity of a test in terms of this method involves demonstrating that the test meaningfully predicts some real-world criteria (e.g. a valid test of extroversion might be expected to predict success in sales roles, while a valid test of consciousness might be expected to predict success in administrative roles)
July 20, 2026

Precautionary suspensions

In the public sector, the Senior Management Service Handbook (SMS Handbook) directly addresses precautionary suspensions and the 60-day time limit.

Clause 2.7(2)(c) of the SMS Handbook provides that ‘If a member is suspended or transferred as a precautionary measure, the employer must hold a disciplinary hearing within 60 days. The chair of the hearing must then decide on any further postponement.’

Regulation 6 of the Local Government: Disciplinary Regulations Senior Managers, 2010 (Regulations) provides for the precautionary suspension of senior municipal employees and Regulation 6(6)(a) provides: ‘If a senior is suspended, a disciplinary hearing must commence within three months after the date of suspension, failing which the suspension will automatically lapse.’

What are the principles governing a determination of the question as to whether or not a senior municipal employee’s suspension automatically lapses in terms of the aforesaid Regulation 6(6)(a)?

Obviously, the answers to the aforesaid question are very relevant in the private sector where, firstly, a collective agreement regulates a similar process or, alternatively, such contractual rights have been created between the parties, to be enforced in terms of s77(3) of the BCEA.

July 13, 2026

In the previous article, we dealt with the consequences of a plant level collective agreement with a definite beginning and end date. We indicated to you that, in line with s23(2) of the LRA, and an analysis of the relevant case law, that, once such a collective agreement reaches its expiry date, it expires and is no longer of any force or effect. In this article, we deal with the scenario where a plant level collective agreement is concluded for an indefinite period and the employer gave notice to terminate same.

What are the consequences when a party to a plant level collective agreement, concluded for an indefinite time period, gives notice to terminate such collective agreement?

July 6, 2026

In terms of s23(2), a collective agreement binds, for the whole period of the collective agreement, every person so bound in terms of s23(1)(c) (the members of a registered trade union and the employers who are members of a registered employers’ organisation who are a party to the collective agreement, if the collective agreement regulates the terms and conditions of employment, or the conduct of the employers and employees) who was a member at the time it became binding, or who becomes a member after it became binding (irrespective of whether or not that person continues to be a member of such trade union or employers’ organisation for the duration of the collective agreement).

What is the relevant case law development as to a plant level collective agreement that has an expiry date, i e does such collective agreement continue to be of force and effect after such expiry date?