The Work Values Assessment test was originally designed by the O*NET consortium, a project produced and funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, the Employment and Training Administration, and the Office of Policy and Research (OPR). Their instrument has been reproduced here for public use under provision of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA, 1996).

The original pen-and-paper instrument was created through Department of Labor grants with the National O*NET Consortium, National Center for O*NET Development; the North Carolina Employment Security Commission, Southern Assessment Research and Development Center; the Utah Department of Employment Security, Western Assessment Research and Development Center; the New York Department of Labor, Eastern Assessment Research and Development Center; and the Michigan Employment Security Commission, Northern Assessment Research and Development Center.