The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has had a competency-based vocational instructor approval process for more than two and one-half decades. Perhaps the most important element in this process has been the vocational competency testing. Although some say that Massachusetts is out of step, others feel that Massachusetts has a well-established testing component and will soon be recognized for being in the forefront of competency-based teacher education. Court decisions since Griggs v. Duke Power Co. uphold the right of the state to use competency testing as a criterion for employment. Various cases, however, reinforce the notion that employment tests must be demonstrably job-related, should predict job performance, and must be content valid. Furthermore, due process is guaranteed in the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination. Massachusetts has developed a User's Manual for the Vocational Competency Testing Program, which describes procedures for validating tests and developing job-related tests and the Appeals Process. Recommendations have been made for validation studies. (Appendixes include a survey of necessity of occupational examinations for certification, uniform guidelines on employee selection, and vocational instructor approval requirements.) (YLB)