This booklet is part of a tool, developed by HRSDC, now called Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), to help ensure that workers have the Essential Skills to get the job done.

This assessor’s booklet begins with instructions for administering the client assessment booklet for writing at complexity level 1. The second section provides an introduction and detailed instructions for the client on the assessment process; answers and explanations for each assessment task; and a section where the assessor can record a client’s assessment results and observations.

Each assessment question is a typical workplace task that shows how writing skills are used in different jobs in Canada. For example, one deals with an employee who must email a co-worker to confirm payment of an invoice.

The questions are organized in order of difficulty, starting with simple tasks and progressing to harder ones. All tasks are in open answer format, with clients required to write their answers in the space provided after each question.