The American College Testing Program is developing a new program, Work Keys, a system to develop and assess employability skills. It consists of four components: (1) a systematic process for profiling job skill requirements; (2) assessments that measure learners' job skill levels; (3) procedures and formats for conveying assessment results so they will be useful to those receiving them; and (4) instructional resources to assist educators and learners in developing these job skills. The conceptual foundation of the Work Keys assessment system, the development process, and the first developed assessments are discussed. Work Keys assessments embody a new approach to standardized testing, one that combines a primary focus on criterion-referenced achievement with significant aspects of construct-based ability testing. Work Keys development includes specifications development, prototyping, and item construction, followed by content and fairness reviews, and pretesting and construction of operational forms. To date, Work Keys has produced three assessments yielding four scores: "Reading for Information,""Applied Mathematics,""Listening," and "Writing." The Listening and Writing instrument is administered as a single constructed-response assessment and can then be scored for listening, writing, or both. The four assessments are available beginning in September 1992. Five tables give details about test construction. An appendix contains the test descriptions. (SLD)