On July 30, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the Department of Labor (“DOL”) must disclose federal contractor EEO-1 Reports requested by the Center for Investigative Reporting (“CIR”). The court held that the EEO-1 Reports are not protected from disclosure under the FOIA exemption…

Federal contractors and subcontractors meeting the VEVRAA eligibility threshold of having at least one federal contract totaling $150,000 or more (“Covered Contractors”) must annually file a VETS-4212 Report, which provides a breakdown of a Covered Contractor’s workforce based on protected veteran status.  According to the VETS-4212 Portal, the VETS-4212…

On June 11, 2025, Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate issued a memorandum entitled Civil Division Enforcement Priorities (the “Memorandum”), outlining five areas of focus for Department of Justice (“DOJ”) Civil Division investigations and enforcement actions. Among these priorities is “combatting unlawful discriminatory practices in the private sector.”

Referencing President Donald…

On July 7, 2025, Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer issued Order 08-2025 (the “Order”) impacting OFCCP’s enforcement of Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act (“Section 503”) and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (“VEVRAA”).  Here is what you need to know about this development, based on the OFCCP’s bulletin…

On June 27, 2025, Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) Director Catherine Eschbach issued a letter announcing that OFCCP is “providing all federal contractors withthe opportunity to volunteer informationin narrative form about what actions they have taken” in response to Executive Order (“EO”)14173, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based…

The Trump Administration has announced plans to “eliminate” the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”), the agency currently responsible for enforcing affirmative action and anti-discrimination protections for veterans and workers with disabilities among federal contractors.  Under the Trump Administration’s fiscal year 2026 budget proposal, the…

On April 15, 2025, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) submitted a “non-substantive” Information Collection Request (“ICR”) to the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) for approval ahead of its 2024 data collection.  Among the requested changes, the EEOC seeks OMB approval for the elimination of the option allowing employers…

On March 24, 2025, the Department of Labor announced the appointment of Catherine Eschbach as Director of OFCCP.  Direct Eschbach joins the agency after serving as an appellate lawyer in private practice.

Director Eschbach intends to “oversee [OFCCP’s] transition to its new scope of mission[.]” Notably, in the announcement Director…