Job evaluation is the assessment of the content of a job by reference to its core components, such as skill, effort and responsibility, for the purpose of placing jobs in order of hierarchy.
Job evaluation establishes a basis for management, employees and trade unions to agree on the relative value of jobs to form the basis of career structures and to establish a fair pay system. The need for restructuring following a merger is a common reason for carrying out job evaluation, as job evaluation can provide a logical underpinning to the introduction of a single pay and grading structure.