Six free job description templates: standard, blank form, small business, duties worksheet, posting-ready with pay range, and a filled-in example. DOCX.
Six job description templates for small business: a standard version, a blank one-page form, a version written for owners with no HR department, a duties worksheet, a posting-ready version with the pay range at the top, and a filled-in example. Editable Word documents, no email form in the way.
Most job description templates hand you a blank form with the word Responsibilities at the top. That is not the hard part. The hard part is knowing which duties count as essential and which do not, whether the pay range has to go in the posting, and how to write the thing at all when you are the owner, the hiring manager, and the trainer, and the role you are describing is one you have been doing yourself for a year.
So there are six templates here rather than one, and two of them are worked examples instead of blank forms. Each downloads as an editable Word document, free, with no email form. There is also a version written specifically for a business with no HR department, which adds the three sections the large template libraries never include: what the week actually looks like, what success is at 90 days, and what this job is not.
TL;DR
A job description defines a role internally; a job posting sells it to candidates. A complete description covers the header block, a position summary, essential functions kept separate from marginal ones, qualifications, physical requirements, and an EEO statement. Two rules save the most trouble: the title does not decide overtime, and in several states the pay range has to appear in the posting itself. Six free DOCX templates below, no signup.
What a Job Description Template Is
A job description is the internal document that defines a role: what it is accountable for, which duties are core to it, what someone needs to do it, and how it is classified and paid. A template is the reusable structure that supplies those sections so you fill in specifics rather than re-deciding the shape for every hire.
It is worth being precise about what the document is for, because that decides how you write it. A job description is written for the file, the manager, and the person doing the work. A posting is written for a candidate deciding whether to apply. Same facts, different job, different length.
Why the Written Version Carries Weight
Under federal disability law, a written job description prepared before advertising or interviewing for a job is treated as evidence of the position's essential functions (EEOC). It is evidence, not proof: if the people actually in the job do not perform a duty, or perform it rarely, the real work counts for more than the paper. The timing matters as much as the content, since a description written after a dispute arises carries far less weight than one that already existed.
What Every Job Description Includes
Eight elements, sorting into four groups. The first three are what every template covers. The fourth is what separates a document you can rely on from a list of verbs.
The header block
Title, department, and who they report to
Location, schedule, and hours
Exempt or non-exempt classification
Pay range and date prepared
The work
Position summary: why the role exists
Essential functions, listed separately
Marginal functions, listed separately
Rough time share per duty
The bar
Required qualifications
Preferred qualifications
Physical and environmental requirements
The legal layer
Equal opportunity statement
Accommodation contact
Not-a-contract acknowledgment
Signature and review date
Two things get skipped more than anything else and both cause the same kind of trouble later. The essential and marginal split is what makes the description usable when someone asks for an accommodation or when you are deciding whether a candidate is qualified. And the review date is what tells the next reader whether they are looking at the current job or the one it used to be.
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Take the standard version for a general role, the blank form if you want to write it by hand with the person doing the job, and one of the two worked examples if you would rather adapt than start from nothing.
Standard Job Description
Start here
The full internal document: header block with classification and pay range, position summary, essential and marginal functions kept separate, qualifications, physical requirements, EEO statement, and a signature line. The right choice for most roles.
Blank Form
One page, fill it in
A stripped fillable version with nothing but ruled lines and numbered slots. For when you want to write it by hand with the person who does the job, or hand a manager something they will actually finish in fifteen minutes.
Small-Business Version
No HR department
For a business where the owner writes the posting and trains the hire personally. Drops the boilerplate and adds three sections nobody else has: what the week actually looks like, what success is at 90 days, and what this job is not.
Duties and Responsibilities
Sort the work first
A six-step worksheet for listing every task, testing which ones are essential, grouping them into areas, and recording decision rights. Use it before writing the description, or when splitting one overloaded role into two.
Posting-Ready Version
Pay range at the top
The candidate-facing version, written to be published. Leads with the pay range because several states require it in the posting itself, then covers duties, requirements, schedule, how to apply, and accommodation contact.
Filled-In Example
Office manager
A complete worked sample for a nine-person dental practice, with real time percentages, a real pay range, and specific duties. Useful as a calibration check for how concrete your own version should be.
If You Are Writing Your First One
Start with the blank form and fill it in with whoever currently does the work, then move the content into the standard template once you know what is actually in the job. Doing it in that order takes about twenty minutes and produces a better document than staring at a full template alone for an hour. If you are the owner and there is no HR department, take the small-business version instead: it drops the sections that exist for approval chains you do not have.
6 Free Job Description Templates
Download all six together or copy an individual template. Each is an editable Word document with no email form. Fill in the brackets, delete what does not apply, and change anything that does not match how the job really works.
Download All 6 Job Description Templates
Standard, blank form, small business, duties worksheet, posting-ready, and a filled-in example. Six DOCX files in one download.
Template 1: Standard Job Description
The complete internal document. Header block with classification and pay range, position summary, essential and marginal functions kept separate, qualifications, physical requirements, EEO statement with an accommodation contact, and a signature line.
Standard Job Description Template
JOB DESCRIPTION
[Company Name]
Job title:
Department: [ ] Reports to: [title]
Location: [city, state / remote / hybrid]
Schedule: [full-time / part-time], [hours per week], [shift or days]
Classification: [exempt / non-exempt] under the Fair Labor Standards Act
Pay range: $[min] to $[max] per [hour / year]
Prepared by: [Name] Date: [MM/DD/YYYY]
POSITION SUMMARY
[Two or three sentences on why this role exists and what it is accountable for.
Write the outcome, not the activity. "Keeps the front office running so the
owner and the field crew are not answering phones" says more than "performs
administrative duties as assigned."]
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
These are the core duties of the position. A candidate must be able to perform
them with or without reasonable accommodation.
•[Duty. Start with a verb. Add rough time share if useful: 30 percent.]
•[Duty.]
•[Duty.]
•[Duty.]
•[Duty.]
•[Duty.]
MARGINAL FUNCTIONS
These duties are part of the job but are incidental, occasional, or could be
reassigned to someone else without changing what the position is.
•[Duty.]
•[Duty.]
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•[Experience: years and the kind that actually matters]
•[Licence, certification, or clearance, if the work genuinely requires it]
•[Skill or system the person must already know on day one]
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
•[Nice to have. Anything you would train rather than screen for belongs here.]
•[Nice to have.]
PHYSICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
[List only what the job truly requires: lifting weight and frequency, standing,
driving, temperature, noise, travel percentage. Do not copy a generic list. A
requirement listed here that nobody actually performs can be used against you.]
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
Pay range: $[min] to $[max] per [hour / year], based on [experience, licensure]
Benefits: [health, retirement, paid time off, tools, vehicle, training]
Bonus or commission: [describe, or write "none"]
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
[Company Name] is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the
basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any
other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. We provide
reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities in the
application process and on the job. To request an accommodation, contact
[name, email, phone].
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This job description describes the general nature of the work and is not an
exhaustive list of every duty. It is not an employment contract and does not
change the at-will nature of employment.
Employee: Date:
Manager: Date:
DISCLAIMER: This is a sample template for general information only and is not
legal advice. Posting requirements, classification rules, and required notices
vary by state and change over time. Confirm current requirements before use.
Template 2: Blank Job Description Form
One page of ruled lines and numbered slots, with nothing to delete. For writing it by hand alongside the person who does the job, or handing to a manager who will actually finish it.
Blank Job Description Form (One Page)
JOB DESCRIPTION
Company:
Job title:
Reports to:
Department:
Location:
Schedule:
Classification: [ ] Exempt [ ] Non-exempt
Pay range:
Date prepared:
WHY THIS ROLE EXISTS
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
MARGINAL FUNCTIONS
1.
2.
MUST HAVE
1.
2.
3.
NICE TO HAVE
1.
2.
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS
Lifting: Frequency:
Standing or walking:
Driving: Travel:
Other:
REVIEWED
Prepared by: Date:
Approved by: Date:
Next review:
DISCLAIMER: This is a sample template for general information only and is not
legal advice.
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Template 3: Small-Business Version, No HR Department
For a business where the owner writes the posting and trains the hire personally. Adds what the week actually looks like, what success is at 90 days, and a plainly worded section on what this job is not.
Small-Business Job Description (No HR Department)
JOB DESCRIPTION
[Company Name]
Role:
Written by: [owner or manager name] Date: [MM/DD/YYYY]
Reports to: [you, most likely]
Pay: $[min] to $[max] per [hour / year]
Hours: [ ] Location: [ ]
For a business where the owner writes the posting, interviews the candidate, and
trains the hire personally. There is no committee here, so this version drops
the boilerplate and keeps the six things a real person needs to decide whether
to apply and whether to stay.
WHAT THIS PERSON OWNS
[The two or three things that become theirs, not yours, once they are up to
speed. Be specific and be honest. "Owns the schedule" is different from "helps
with the schedule," and the candidate can tell which one you meant.]
•[ ]
•[ ]
•[ ]
WHAT THE WEEK ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE
[Describe a normal week rather than a duty list. Mornings, afternoons, the busy
day, the quiet day, who they talk to, what interrupts them. This is the section
candidates read twice and the one that prevents a bad-fit hire.]
Monday to [ ]: [ ]
Busiest stretch: [ ]
Who they work with: [ ]
WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE AT 90 DAYS
•[Concrete outcome you could point at and agree on]
•[Concrete outcome]
•[Concrete outcome]
WHAT YOU NEED ON DAY ONE
•[Skill, licence, or experience that is genuinely non-negotiable]
•[ ]
WHAT WE WILL TEACH YOU
•[The thing most employers screen for and you are willing to train]
•[ ]
WHAT THIS JOB IS NOT
[The most useful section on this page and the one nobody writes. Say plainly
what the role does not include, what it is not a stepping stone to yet, and the
part of the work people consistently underestimate. Candidates who need to hear
this will screen themselves out, which saves you both the interview.]
THE PRACTICAL DETAILS
Pay: $[ ] per [ ], reviewed at [ ]
Schedule: [ ] Overtime: [expected / rare / not available]
Time off: [ ] Benefits: [ ] (or "none yet, and here is the plan")
[Company Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities. To request an
accommodation, contact [name, phone].
DISCLAIMER: This is a sample template for general information only and is not
legal advice. Posting and classification rules vary by state. Confirm current
requirements before use.
Template 4: Job Duties and Responsibilities Worksheet
Six steps for listing every task, testing which are essential, grouping them into areas, and recording decision rights. Use it before writing the description, or when splitting one overloaded role in two.
Job Duties and Responsibilities Template
JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
[Company Name]
Role: Reports to:
Prepared by: [Name] Date: [MM/DD/YYYY]
Use this before writing the full job description, or on its own when you are
splitting work between two people, correcting a role that has drifted, or
settling an argument about who owns what. Sort every task, then mark it
essential or marginal.
STEP 1: LIST EVERY TASK
Write down everything the role does in a normal month, including the things
nobody thinks to mention. Ask the person currently doing the work rather than
writing from memory.
Task | How often | Time share | E or M
[ ] | [daily] | [ %] | [ ]
[ ] | [weekly] | [ %] | [ ]
[ ] | [monthly] | [ %] | [ ]
[ ] | [ ] | [ %] | [ ]
[ ] | [ ] | [ %] | [ ]
[ ] | [ ] | [ %] | [ ]
[ ] | [ ] | [ %] | [ ]
[ ] | [ ] | [ %] | [ ]
E = essential, M = marginal
STEP 2: TEST EACH TASK
A duty is usually essential if one of these is true:
•The position exists in order to perform it.
•Only a small number of people are available to take it on.
•It is specialised enough that you hired this person specifically for it.
A duty is usually marginal if it could be reassigned to someone else without
changing what the job is.
STEP 3: GROUP THE ESSENTIAL DUTIES
AREA 1: [ ]
•[ ]
•[ ]
•[ ]
AREA 2: [ ]
•[ ]
•[ ]
AREA 3: [ ]
•[ ]
•[ ]
STEP 4: MARGINAL DUTIES
•[ ]
•[ ]
STEP 5: DECISION RIGHTS
Decides alone: [ ]
Decides with [role]: [ ]
Recommends, someone else decides: [ ]
Does not decide: [ ]
STEP 6: WHAT THIS ROLE DOES NOT COVER
[The tasks people will assume belong here and do not, and who owns them
instead. This is the section that prevents the same question every month.]
•[Task] belongs to [role]
•[Task] belongs to [role]
DISCLAIMER: This is a sample template for general information only and is not
legal advice.
Template 5: Posting-Ready Version with Pay Range
The candidate-facing version, written to be published. Pay range at the top, duties and requirements in plain language, a real application timeline, and an accommodation contact.
[Several states require the pay range to appear in the posting itself rather
than behind a link, a QR code, or an "available on request" line. Put the
numbers here, in good faith, at the top. If the role is commission-only, say so
plainly. If the pay depends on licensure or shift, say what moves it.]
Range reflects: [experience, licensure, shift differential]
ABOUT THE ROLE
[Two or three sentences. What the role does and why it matters to the business.
Written for a candidate deciding whether to keep reading, not for the file.]
WHAT YOU WILL DO
•[Essential function]
•[Essential function]
•[Essential function]
•[Essential function]
•[Essential function]
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
Required:
•[ ]
•[ ]
Preferred:
•[ ]
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS
[Only what the role genuinely requires: lifting weight and frequency, standing,
driving, travel, working conditions.]
SCHEDULE AND BENEFITS
Schedule: [ ]
Benefits: [ ]
Start date: [ ]
HOW TO APPLY
[Where to send it, what to include, and roughly when they will hear back. Say
the timeline even if it is "within two weeks," because saying nothing is the
most common complaint candidates have.]
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY AND ACCOMMODATION
[Company Name] is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will
receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual
orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic
information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
If you need a reasonable accommodation to apply or to interview, contact
[name, email, phone] and we will work with you.
DISCLAIMER: This is a sample template for general information only and is not
legal advice. Pay range disclosure rules, required notices, and employer-size
thresholds vary by state and city and change often. Confirm the rules that apply
to where the work will be performed, including remote work, before posting.
Template 6: Filled-In Example, Office Manager
A complete sample for a nine-person practice with time percentages, a real pay range, and specific duties. Useful as a calibration check for how concrete your own version should be.
Filled-In Example: Office Manager
JOB DESCRIPTION
Riverside Dental Group
Job title: Office Manager
Department: Administration Reports to: Practice Owner
Location: Springfield, [State], on site
Schedule: Full-time, 40 hours per week, Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 4:30pm
Classification: Non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act
Pay range: $24.00 to $30.00 per hour, based on practice-management experience
Prepared by: J. Alvarez Date: 03/12/2026
POSITION SUMMARY
The Office Manager runs the front of the practice so clinical staff can stay
clinical. This person owns scheduling, patient intake, insurance verification,
billing follow-up, and supply ordering for a nine-person practice. Success looks
like a full schedule, clean claims, and an owner who no longer answers the phone.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
•Manage the daily schedule for three providers, filling cancellations and
confirming the following day. Approximately 25 percent of the role.
•Verify insurance eligibility before appointments and explain patient
responsibility at check-in. Approximately 20 percent.
•Submit claims, work the aging report weekly, and follow up on denials.
Approximately 20 percent.
•Handle patient calls, intake paperwork, and records requests.
Approximately 15 percent.
•Order clinical and office supplies against a monthly budget, and reconcile
invoices. Approximately 10 percent.
•Open and close the office, including cash handling and daily deposit.
Approximately 10 percent.
MARGINAL FUNCTIONS
•Coordinate the quarterly staff lunch and the annual holiday card mailing.
•Meet supply representatives when the owner is unavailable.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•Two years in a medical or dental front office, including insurance
verification and claims follow-up
•Comfortable owning a schedule and making judgment calls without checking first
•Accurate with numbers under interruption
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
•Experience with a dental practice-management system
•Conversational Spanish
PHYSICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
Seated at a workstation for most of the shift, with regular movement between the
front desk, operatories, and supply room. Occasional lifting of supply boxes up
to 25 pounds. Standard clinical office environment.
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
Pay range: $24.00 to $30.00 per hour
Benefits: health stipend, 10 paid holidays, 12 days paid time off in year one,
retirement plan with 3 percent match after 12 months, continuing education paid
Overtime: paid at time and a half, rarely required, approved in advance
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
Riverside Dental Group is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate
on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any
other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. To request a
reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact the Practice Owner
at [phone].
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This job description describes the general nature of the work and is not an
exhaustive list of every duty. It is not an employment contract and does not
change the at-will nature of employment.
Employee: Date:
Manager: Date:
DISCLAIMER: This is a sample filled in with fictional details to show the level
of specificity that works. It is general information only and is not legal
advice. Pay, benefits, and posting rules vary by state.
How to Write One
The template handles the structure. The writing has one failure mode, and it is always the same one: describing the role as you imagine it rather than as it is performed.
Write it with the person doing the job
Sit with whoever currently holds the work and record what actually happens in a week, including the tasks they never mention because they seem too small.
Split essential from marginal
Mark each duty. Essential means the role exists to do it, few others can, or it is why you hired this person. Everything else is marginal and should be labelled that way.
Cut it down for the posting
The internal description is one to two pages. The posting is a shorter, warmer version of the same facts with the pay range at the top and a way to ask for accommodation.
Sign it, file it, date it
Have the hire and the manager acknowledge it, store it in the employee record, and set a review date so you know whether it still describes the job.
The first step is the one worth insisting on. The person currently doing the work has a mental list of tasks that never appear in any description, usually because they seem too small to mention, and those are exactly the tasks a new hire will be blindsided by in week two. Twenty minutes of asking beats an hour of drafting.
On style, three rules cover most of it. Start each duty with a verb. Keep one duty per line, so anything containing and is probably two duties. And write the qualifications for the person you would actually hire, not the person you would dream about, since every extra requirement narrows the pool without improving it.
Pay Range, ADA, and Posting Rules
Three US rules shape how a job description should be written and published. All three are easy to get wrong and all three are handled by the templates above.
Pay range disclosure is the first. More than a dozen states plus the District of Columbia now regulate pay disclosure in some form, and sources differ on the exact count because the laws differ in what they actually require: some want a range in every posting, others only on request or before an offer. The employer-size thresholds vary enormously, which is the part small businesses get caught by.
State
Who is covered
What the posting must include
California
15 or more employees, at least one in California
The pay scale in the posting itself, not behind a link or QR code
Colorado
Any employer with at least one employee in the state
Compensation range plus a general description of benefits
New York
Four or more employees
Compensation range and the job description, if one exists
Elsewhere
Varies widely; several states have no posting rule at all
Check the state where the work will be performed before publishing
New York Asks for the Job Description Itself
This is the detail most template pages miss. New York Labor Law section 194-b requires employers with four or more employees to disclose, in the advertisement, both the compensation range and the job description for the opportunity, if such a description exists (New York State Department of Labor). California's rule under SB 1162 applies at 15 or more employees, while Colorado covers employers with even one in-state employee. Remote roles matter here: a job that could be performed from a covered state can pull you into that state's rule. This is general information, not legal advice.
Disability law is the second. Federal disability requirements apply to employers with 15 or more employees, and the essential functions section is where the job description does its legal work. List physical requirements only when the role genuinely involves them. A lifting requirement copied from a generic template, then used to screen someone out, is a problem you invented.
Where you publish also matters, since job boards apply their own formatting and content requirements on top of the law.
The Title Does Not Decide Overtime
Writing manager in the job title does not make someone exempt from overtime. Federal guidance states plainly that job titles do not determine exempt status, and that whether an exemption applies depends on the employee's specific duties and salary meeting the tests in the regulations.
Duties and Salary, Not Titles
To qualify for the standard white-collar exemptions, an employee generally must meet the duties tests and be paid on a salary basis of at least $684 per week, and job titles do not determine exempt status (U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #17A). Several states set a higher salary threshold than the federal one, and where state law is more protective, state law applies. This is general information, not legal advice.
The practical risk for a small business is subtler than misclassifying outright. It is writing supervisory duties into a description because they sound impressive, when the person spends the day doing the same work as everyone else. That creates a written record contradicting what actually happened, which is worse than having written nothing. Classify from the real duties first, then write the description to match.
Job Descriptions by Role
The templates above are role-neutral on purpose. If you are hiring for a specific position, it is faster to start from a description already written for that job and adjust it, since the duty list, the qualifications people actually screen for, and the physical requirements are largely settled by the role.
Every role page follows the same structure as the standard template here, so anything you learn on one transfers. If your role is not listed, take the standard template and use the duties worksheet to build the duty list from scratch.
Without an HR Department
The large template libraries write for a company with a compensation team, a recruiter, and a hiring committee. At twelve people all three are the same person, and that person is also serving customers. Three things go wrong, and they are the same three every time.
The description is a list of verbs nobody wrote down honestly
Generic duty lists get generic applicants. The version that works names the two or three things this person will own outright, describes a normal week, and says what the job is not. That last part costs you a few applications and saves you the wrong hire, which is the trade every small business should want.
Nobody has an afternoon to write one from scratch
You do not need an afternoon. Sit with whoever currently does the work, or with the pile of tasks you are trying to hand off, and fill in the blank form in twenty minutes. A rough description that exists beats a polished one you never finish, and you can sharpen it after the first two interviews tell you what candidates keep asking.
It was written for the last hire and never touched again
Roles drift faster at ten people than at a thousand, because everyone absorbs whatever falls on the floor. A description written two hires ago describes a job that no longer exists, which makes it useless for interviewing and worse than useless if a classification or accommodation question ever comes up. Put a review date on it and check it when the person changes or the work does.
The fix is smaller than it looks. Write descriptions for the roles you are actively hiring or actively confused about, not for every seat in the company, and write them badly enough to finish.
Description vs Posting vs Ad
These three get used interchangeably, and then someone publishes a two-page internal document to a job board and wonders why applications dried up. They are different documents with different readers.
Document
Written for
Where it lives
Length
Job description
The file, the manager, and the person doing the work
The employee record and the role file
One to two pages
Job posting
A candidate deciding whether to apply
Job boards and your careers page
Under 300 words
Job ad
Someone who was not looking
Social, email, print, or a paid placement
A few lines
Write the description first, then cut the posting from it. Going the other direction produces a description missing everything that matters when a classification question comes up.
Sign, Store, and Update
The templates work on their own, printed and filled in. What tends not to work is what happens afterwards: a shared drive folder holding four versions of the same description, none of them signed, and nobody sure which one the current employee agreed to.
Two habits fix most of it. Capture an acknowledgment when the person starts, so there is a dated record of which version they accepted. And attach the description to the role rather than filing it by date, so the manager writing next year's review is reading the same document the hire signed.
That is the part FirstHR handles: the job description attaches to the employee profile alongside the offer letter and the rest of the onboarding paperwork, acknowledgments come back e-signed with a dated record, and the current version is the one people see. FirstHR is an onboarding and HR platform, not a job board and not a law firm, so it does not post your opening, source candidates, or advise on classification or state posting rules. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR.
Key Takeaways
A job description defines the role internally; a job posting sells it to candidates. Write the description first, then cut the posting from it.
Eight elements make a complete description, and the two most often skipped are the essential and marginal split and the review date.
A written description prepared before advertising or interviewing is treated as evidence of a role's essential functions, but only if the work matches the paper.
Job titles do not determine exempt status. Classify from the real duties and the salary test, then write the description to match.
Several states require the pay range in the posting itself, and New York also asks for the job description if one exists. Thresholds range from one employee to fifteen.
List physical requirements only when the job genuinely involves them, since a requirement nobody performs can be used against you.
Write descriptions with the person doing the work, not from your idea of the role, and put a review date on each one.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a job description template?
A job description template is a reusable document structure for defining a role, so you fill in the specifics rather than deciding the shape each time. A complete one covers a header block with the title, reporting line, schedule, exempt or non-exempt classification, and pay range; a position summary explaining why the role exists; essential functions listed separately from marginal ones; required and preferred qualifications; physical requirements; an equal opportunity statement with an accommodation contact; and an acknowledgment making clear the document is not an employment contract. Using the same template across roles matters more than the template being perfect, because consistency is what makes a set of descriptions usable when you are comparing two roles or defending one.
What should a job description include?
Eight things. The header block: title, department, who they report to, location, schedule, classification, and pay range. A position summary in two or three sentences stating why the role exists. Essential functions, listed separately, ideally with a rough time share. Marginal functions, listed separately from those. Required qualifications, kept to what is genuinely non-negotiable on day one. Preferred qualifications, for anything you would train rather than screen for. Physical and environmental requirements, limited to what the job truly involves. And the legal layer: an equal opportunity statement, an accommodation contact, a not-a-contract acknowledgment, and a signature line. The two most often skipped are the essential and marginal split and the review date, and both matter later.
How do you write a job description for a small business?
Write it with the person who currently does the work rather than from your idea of the role, because the real job includes tasks nobody mentions. List everything they do in a normal month, then mark each task essential or marginal. Keep the whole document to one or two pages. Name the two or three things this person will own outright, describe what a normal week actually looks like, and say what the job is not, since that last section screens out bad fits before you spend an interview on them. Add the pay range and the classification. Then have the hire and the manager sign it, file it in the employee record, and set a review date, because roles drift faster at ten employees than at a thousand.
Do I have to include a salary range in a job posting?
It depends on where the work will be performed, and the answer increasingly is yes. More than a dozen states plus the District of Columbia now regulate pay disclosure, though sources differ on the exact count because the laws differ in what they require. California requires employers with 15 or more employees to include the pay scale in the posting itself, not behind a link or a QR code. Colorado covers any employer with at least one employee in the state. New York covers employers with four or more employees and, notably, also requires the job description in the advertisement if one exists. Remote roles complicate this, because a job that could be performed from a covered state can pull you into that state's rule. Check the rules for where the work will be done before you publish. This is general information, not legal advice.
What is the difference between essential and marginal job functions?
Essential functions are the core duties the position exists to perform. Under federal guidance a duty is generally essential if the position exists in order to perform it, only a limited number of employees are available to take it on, or it is specialised enough that you hired this person specifically for that expertise. Marginal functions are incidental duties that could be reassigned without changing what the job is. The distinction matters because it drives who is qualified for the role and what reasonable accommodation looks like. It is also why physical requirements should be listed only when they are genuinely required: a lifting requirement nobody actually performs, used to screen someone out, is a problem you created for yourself. This is general information, not legal advice.
Does a job description make an employee exempt from overtime?
No, and this is one of the most expensive misunderstandings in small business hiring. Federal guidance is explicit that job titles do not determine exempt status. Whether an employee is exempt from minimum wage and overtime depends on their actual primary duties and their salary meeting the tests in the regulations, currently a salary basis of at least $684 per week for the standard white-collar exemptions. Writing manager in the title, or listing supervisory duties the person does not really perform, does not create an exemption. What it can do is create a written record that contradicts what the person actually did, which is worse than having written nothing. Classify from the real duties, then write the description to match. This is general information, not legal advice.
Are these job description templates free to download?
Yes. All six download as editable Word documents with no email form and no account. That is worth checking elsewhere, because several of the largest job description libraries put their templates behind a membership or route the download through a lead capture form, and others offer a free tier where the more complete versions sit behind an upgrade. Free also does not mean finished: a template is a structure, and the value is in the specifics you add, which is why two of these six are worked examples rather than blank forms. Download the version that matches your situation, fill in the brackets, and delete anything that does not fit how you actually work.
How long should a job description be?
One to two pages for the internal description, and under 300 words for the posting version that candidates read. These are two different documents doing two different jobs, which is the distinction most small businesses miss. The internal description is a complete record: every essential function, the classification, the physical requirements, the legal statements, and a signature. The posting is a shorter and warmer version of the same facts, written to help someone decide whether to apply. If you publish the internal document as your posting, it reads like a legal notice and applications drop. If you file the posting as your description, you are missing the parts that matter when a classification or accommodation question comes up. Write both from the same source.
