More than 40 percent of job applicants tested in reading and nearly 35 percent of those tested in math lack the basic skills necessary for the jobs they sought last year, according to an American Management Association (AMA) survey released recently.

The annual survey encompassed results from 1,627 firms that tested an average of 278 job applicants for job skills, psychological fitness, or other aptitudes within the last year. Of those applicants, 34.1 percent were rejected on the grounds of insufficient skills.

According to the 2001 survey, 41 percent of respondents required basic math or literacy skills tests of job applicants, down 2 percent from the previous year, but level with the share from the 1999 survey.