Common use of Examination Observer Clause in Contracts

Examination Observer. A neutral observer(s), who is not an employee of the City of Richmond, may be appointed by the RPOA to observe the process subject to the following conditions: a) The observer must observe all candidates who participate in the specific portion of the examination that is to be observed, e.g. an observer sitting in on a particular panel's interviews must sit in on the interview of every candidate the panel reviews, not just specific candidates. Similarly, if the observer wishes to review certain written test items, i.e., essay or in-basket, the observer must review all essays or in-baskets to be aware of the quality of the full range of responses the candidates have made. Such review of written test items must be requested before the items are removed from the City to be scored by a consultant. b) There shall be no more than one observer for any portion of the examination, i.e., if simultaneous interviews are being conducted, there would be an observer with each interview panel, but not more than one observer with each panel. c) The observer shall report to the City and the RPOA those examination process irregularities, if any, which appear to discriminate on the basis of race, sex, national origin, religion, age, or any other area protected by State or Federal law. The observer is not to comment on the ratings that individual raters make. I.e., infer that the test is biased because the panel's ratings are different than the observer's. d) The observer will sign a City confidentiality statement promising not to disclose the contents of the test to any party. The observer may also be required to sign a separate confidentiality/test security agreement by a consultant conducting the test. e) The observer shall not discuss the performance of an individual candidate, unless that candidate files a grievance alleging discrimination. In that case, the City, the Association, and the observer will meet to discuss the observer's observations regarding the candidate's performance. f) The observer shall be present as the examination is conducted and during any briefing/training of raters in their roles. g) If on site raters are utilized, the observer may review the final ratings of the candidates on the specific exercise they have observed. Such request to review ratings must be made before the exam materials are removed from the City by a consultant for grading. h) The observer shall not talk, disrupt, provide clues to any candidates or raters during the examination process, interrupt proceedings in progress, or otherwise disturb the examination process. Any comments the observer wishes to make on the process shall be made as described in c. above (Section 28.5.c).