As previously reported, OFCCP recently launched its Contractor Portal, which requires certain federal government contractors to register and certify their compliance with the requirement to develop and maintain Affirmative Action Programs (“AAPs”). OFCCP has now introduced a “Bulk Upload/Modification” option on the Portal for federal contractors with 100 or more establishments or functional/business units. The … Continue Reading
On May 20, 2022, OFCCP announced it posted its first Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL) of FY22. The list consists of 400 locations selected for a Compliance Review (Establishment Review), Corporate Management Compliance Evaluation, or Functional Affirmative Action Program Review. Note that the list merely notifies these contractors that they will be audited – audits … Continue Reading
Readers of this blog are well-aware that the OFCCP has signaled a new aggressive shift in its enforcement efforts through new Directives and regulatory initiatives. On Wednesday, May 18, 2022, we will host a CLE webinar reviewing these recent significant developments, what they mean for federal contractors and what federal contractors can expect from OFCCP … Continue Reading
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) has released its 2022 Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (“VEVRAA”) benchmark. Effective March 31, 2022, the new benchmark is 5.5%, a slight decrease from 2021’s 5.6% benchmark. This is OFCCP’s seventh reduction of the benchmark, which has steadily declined since its inception in 2014. The VEVRAA Benchmark is … Continue Reading
As previously reported, federal government contractors must certify their compliance with the requirement to develop and maintain Affirmative Action Programs (“AAPs”). The certification must be submitted through the newly created Contractor Portal, which opened for registration on February 1, 2022 and is now open to receive certification submissions. On March 31, 2022, OFCCP held a … Continue Reading
On March 31, 2022, OFCCP issued Directive 2022-02 titled “Effective Compliance Evaluations and Enforcement” (the “Directive”). The Directive’s stated purpose is to “provide transparency on OFCCP’s compliance evaluation policies and expectations for contractors.” However, the Directive guts former-Director Craig Leen’s efforts to ensure OFCCP provided contractors with transparency, fairness, and consistency in audits and in … Continue Reading
As previously reported, OFCCP has developed a Contractor Portal through which contractors are to certify compliance with their obligation to develop and maintain Affirmative Action Programs (“AAPs”). Contractors may begin submitting certifications through the Contractor Portal on March 31, 2022, and certifications must be submitted by June 30, 2022. The Contractor Portal went live on … Continue Reading
On December 10, 2020, OFCCP published its “Nondiscrimination Obligations of Federal Contractors and Subcontractors: Procedures To Resolve Potential Employment Discrimination” (the “Rule”). The Rule was welcomed by the contractor community, as it established important procedural and substantive requirements before OFCCP can issue discrimination findings. Among other things, the Rule sets forth clear parameters for what … Continue Reading
On March 15, 2022, the OFCCP issued its first directive since President Biden took office. Directive 2022-01 (the “Directive”) addresses contractors’ obligations to analyze their compensation systems and to turn over such analyses when under audit. The Directive begins by highlighting contractors’ obligations under 41 C.F.R. § 2.17(b). That regulation provides that contractors “must perform … Continue Reading
As we previously reported, the OFCCP received approval and has launched a “Contractor Portal” which will be used to, among other things, have non-construction contractors annually certify compliance with their affirmative action program (“AAP”) obligations. On February 1, 2022, the Contractor Portal went live. In a bulletin issued on the same day, the OFCCP “strongly … Continue Reading
On December 2, 2021, OFCCP announced the launch of its new “Contractor Portal,” which “[c]overed federal contractors and subcontractors (“contractors”) must use … to certify, on an annual basis, whether they have developed and maintained an affirmative action program for each establishment and/or functional unit, as applicable.” The Contractor Portal will also serve as a … Continue Reading
As a follow up to yesterday’s announcement, OFCCP published its proposal to rescind the “Implementing Legal Requirements Regarding the Equal Employment Opportunity Clause’s Religious Exemption” rule (the “Religious Exemption Rule”) today. The Religious Exemption Rule expanded the existing exemption on religious entities’ compliance with the anti-discrimination provisions of Executive Order 11246. OFCCP contends that the … Continue Reading
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) announced today a proposal to rescind the rule titled “Implementing Legal Requirements Regarding the Equal Opportunity Clause’s Religious Exemption,” which has been in effect since January 8, 2021 (the “Religious Exemption Rule”). The Religious Exemption Rule clarified the scope and application of the religious exemption contained in … Continue Reading
In a step toward implementation of OFCCP’s Affirmative Action Program (“AAP”) Verification Initiative, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved an Affirmative Action Program Verification Interface (AAP-VI) that OFCCP developed for federal contractors to submit AAPs. Although the verification program has not yet launched, and details are scarce, the OFCCP already has an AAP-VI … Continue Reading
On September 3, 2021, OFCCP issued a notice requiring federal contractors to use the recently released 2014-2018 Equal Employment Opportunity Tabulation (“2018 EEO Tab”) to develop any Affirmative Action Programs (“AAPs”) that commence on or after January 1, 2022. The 2018 EEO Tab was released earlier this year by the U.S. Census Bureau. It replaces … Continue Reading
OFCCP announced on September 1, 2021 that it plans to rescind a November 2019 notice regarding EEO-1 Component 2 data. EEO-1 Component 2 data was required to be submitted in 2019, and consists of aggregated employee wage and hours worked data, categorized by EEO-1 classification, race, ethnicity, and sex. The 2019 notice provided OFCCP would … Continue Reading
On September 1, 2021, OFCCP announced the release of a new Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL). The list consists of 400 federal construction contractors, federally assisted contractors and subcontractors. Note that the list merely notifies these construction contractors that they will be audited in the future, which gives them time to prepare. Construction contractors are advised to … Continue Reading
On July 1, 2021, OFCCP announced the release of the first Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL). The list consists of 750 Supply and Service establishment-based full compliance reviews, Corporate Management Compliance Evaluations (CMCE), Functional Affirmative Action Program (FAAP) Reviews and University Reviews. Note that the list merely notifies contractors that they will be audited in … Continue Reading
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) has released its 2021 Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (“VEVRAA”) benchmark. Effective March 31, 2021, the new benchmark is 5.6%, a slight decrease from 2020’s 5.7% benchmark. This is OFCCP’s sixth reduction of the benchmark, which has steadily declined since its inception in 2014. The VEVRAA … Continue Reading
On March 2, 2021, OFCCP announced it had amended the FY2020 Supply and Service Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (“CSAL”) issued on September 11, 2020. The amendments removed all establishments selected to receive focused reviews and compliance checks. In so doing, OFCCP removed over half of the 2,500 compliance evaluations included on the list. The amended … Continue Reading
As we previously reported, shortly after taking office, President Biden revoked the controversial Combatting Race and Sex Stereotyping Executive Order (the “Order”) as part of a new Executive Order focusing on “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government.” The new Order notes that “[i]t is . . . the policy … Continue Reading
As previously reported, the new Biden Administration is wasting no time in making changes impacting the government contractor community. This now includes changing leadership at the OFCCP. As was anticipated, and is now reflected on the agency’s website, Jenny Yang, who served as EEOC Chair during the Obama Administration, has been selected for the OFCCP … Continue Reading
On January 8, 2020, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) published an opinion letter responding to an unidentified religious organization’s request for clarification on the “scope of the legal protections for religious liberty in the workplace.” The organization’s request stemmed from its concern that “employees in the technology, education, public, and other sectors … Continue Reading
As we previously reported, when OFCCP released its latest Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (“CSAL”) in September 2020, it identified contractors selected for the agency’s new reviews focused on promotions and accommodations. Little was known about the reviews, although the agency provided some additional detail later that month when it launched two websites devoted to the … Continue Reading
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