The Fourth International Physical Employment Standards Conference: Perspectives, Themes and Future Directions

This special section of WORK is intended to provide researchers, practitioners, and policy makers with examples of the varying of the applications of Physical Employment Standards (PES) frameworks in physically demanding occupations. The special section is based on the Fourth International PES Conference held at Bond University on the Gold Coast, Australia, from the 24th–26th February 2023. This three-day conference was attended by researchers, practitioners and policymakers working within the military, law enforcement, fire and rescue, paramedicine, astronautics, sport, and industry sectors from 10 nations. The conference, which was delayed by 18 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, built upon previous meetings in Canberra (Australia, 2012), Canmore (Canada, 2015), and Portsmouth (United Kingdom, 2018). The previous PES conferences provided the foundations for the further work presented at the 2023 conference, to contribute to the development of PES methodologies covering the design, development, and implementation of PES within various occupations and agencies. In addition, the fourth PES featured the expansion of the PES methodology to aid in physical conditioning and return-to-work planning for personnel and in the evaluation of job-specific assessments and personal protective equipment.