Transferable Skills Analysis
Must be completed
- In every case that reaches step 5 of sequential evaluation.
- In every case where claimant has past relevant work.
- In every case where claimant is aged 50 or older.
- In every case where transferability of skills is material to case outcome.
Transferability of Skills
- If one rule says "skills transfer" and one says "skills do not transfer" and the outcome for both is “NOT DISABLED,” transferability of skills is not material.
- Skills do not come from education alone or from work not SGA.
- Skills do not come from or transfer to unskilled work.
Examples of skills
- Reading blueprints
- Operating a machine
- Speaking in public
- Running a software program
Specific Vocational Preparation (SVP)
Work lasted long enough for the person to:
- Learn the techniques.
- Acquire the necessary information.
- Develop the facilities needed for average performance of the job situation.
SVP Time required
1 Short demonstration only
2 Beyond short demonstration to 1 month
3 Over 1 month to 3 months
4 Over 3 months to 6 months
5 Over 6 months to 1 year
6 Over 1 year to 2 years
7 Over 2 to 4 years
8 Over 4 years to 10 years
9 Over 10 years
- Unskilled – 1 and 2
- Skilled – 3 or more
- Semi-skilled – up to 3
- You can't rely on generic occupational descriptions from the DOT to determine the claimant's skills.
- Skill level cannot exceed that of the claimant’s past relevant work.
- As age increases, the likelihood of successfully adjusting to other work decreases.
- When skills are highly specialized or in highly technical fields or have been acquired in isolated vocational settings, they may not be readily useable in other industries.
- Transferable skills always trump adversities of age and education.