The U.S. Department of Labor is proposing a new rule that would require federal contractors and subcontractors to set a hiring goal of having 7 percent of their workforces be people with disabilities, among other requirements. The department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs invites public comment on this proposal, which will be published in the Dec. 9 edition of the Federal Register.OFCCP’s proposed rule would strengthen the affirmative action requirements established in Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 obligating federal contractors and subcontractors to ensure equal employment opportunities for qualified workers with disabilities. The proposed regulatory changes detail specific actions contractors must take in the areas of recruitment, training, record keeping and policy dissemination — similar to those that have long been required to promote workplace equality for women and minorities. In addition, the rule would clarify OFCCP’s expectations for contractors by providing specific guidance on how to comply with the law.

“This proposed rule represents one of the most significant advances in protecting the civil rights of workers with disabilities since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “President Obama has demonstrated a commitment to people with disabilities. This proposed rule would help federal contractors better fulfill their legal responsibility to hire qualified workers with disabilities.”

Although Section 503 regulations have been in place for decades, the current unemployment rate for people with disabilities is 13 percent, 1 1/2 times the rate of those without disabilities. Even more discouraging, data published last week by the department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics show stark disparities facing working-age individuals with disabilities, with 79.2 percent outside the labor force altogether, compared to 30.5 percent of those without disabilities.

“For nearly 40 years, the rules have said that contractors simply need to make a ‘good faith’ effort to recruit and hire people with disabilities. Clearly, that’s not working,” said OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu. “Our proposal would define specific goals, require real accountability and provide the clearest possible guidance for employers seeking to comply with the law. What gets measured gets done. And we’re in the business of getting things done.”

Establishing a 7 percent hiring goal for the employment of individuals with disabilities would be a tool for contractors to measure the effectiveness of their affirmative action efforts and thereby inform their decision-making. The proposed rule also would enhance data collection and record-keeping requirements — including for documentation and processing of requests for reasonable accommodation — in order to improve accountability. Additionally, it would ensure annual self-reviews of employers’ recruitment and outreach efforts, and add a new requirement for contractors to list job openings to increase their pools of qualified applicants.

To read the notice of proposed rulemaking or submit a comment, visit the federal e-rulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov. Comments also can be submitted by mail to Debra Carr, Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, U.S. Department of Labor, Room C-3325, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20210. All comments must be received by Feb. 7, 2012, and should include identification number (RIN) 1250-AA02.

In addition to Section 503, OFCCP enforces Executive Order 11246 and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. As amended, these three laws require those who do business with the federal government, both contractors and subcontractors, to follow the fair and reasonable standard that they take affirmative action and not discriminate in employment on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran. For general information, call OFCCP’s toll-free helpline at 800-397-6251 or visit its website at http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/.

Source:  http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/ofccp/OFCCP20111614.htm

The Tax Credits

The Returning Heroes Tax Credit allows different credits for short-term and long-term unemployed veterans.  This means up to $2,400 for veterans who have been unemployed at least four weeks and up to $5,600 for veterans who have been unemployed longer than six months.

The Wounded Warrior Tax Credit will allow a credit of up to $9,600 for hiring veterans with service-connected disabilities that have been unemployed for longer than six months.

Click here for more details about the veteran tax credits.

Veterans Job Bank

To increase the connection between veterans seeking jobs and employers seeking to hire veterans, the Obama Administration has launched the Veterans Job Bank.  According to the website, “The Veterans Job Bank returns job opportunities based on search criteria entered by the user. Powered by a Google search, jobs are drawn from various job boards that have posted or specifically tagged jobs for Veterans.”

Employers seeking to participate in the Veterans Job Bank can follow these instructions to ensure their jobs appear in the appropriate searches.  The instructions are detailed and become very technical quickly, so you’ll want to get your IT department or applicant tracking system provider involved in the process.

Why iPlans?

Affirmative Action Plans have traditionally been stored in folders or cumbersome binders that take up space.  Distribution, monitoring and maintenance of the plans often proved difficult for HR Managers and created potential liability and confidentiality concerns.  To eliminate these problems HudsonMann offers internet based Affirmative Action Plans or iPlans.  All of your company’s Affirmative Action iPlans are stored on a secure customized internet portal site.  The paperless environment of HudsonMann iPlans advances your “go green” efforts.

Affirmative Action iPlans allow for instant distribution of your plans by giving AAP managers a user name and password to view and print AAP reports and documentation.  Corporate HR maintains continuous control and visibility of AAPs from the central iPlan portal.  Universal iPlan access allows HR Managers to easily expose senior HR to key AAP reporting making your plans a management tool not just a compliance document.

Benefits of iPlans

HudsonMann’s comprehensive Affirmative Action iPlans allow HR professionals to focus on
plan implementation rather than development.  In addition, HudsonMann clients will benefit from
a secure online portal which allows access to this and other management tools.

For an online demonstration please call 843.884.5557.

The NLRB’s announcement reads:

As of November 14, 2011, most private sector employers are required to post a notice advising employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act. The 11-by-17-inch notice should be posted in a conspicuous place, where other notifications of workplace rights and employer rules and policies are posted. View the final rule in the Federal Register.

The posters are available below for download and printing. Copies also are available from any of the agency’s regional offices. In addition, employers should publish the notice on an internal or external website if other personnel policies or workplace notices are posted there.

For further information about the posting, including a detailed discussion of which employers are covered by the NLRA, and what to do if a substantial share of the workplace speaks a language other than English, please see our Frequently Asked Questions.

NOTE?: The poster is required to be 11 x 17. When using the downloaded file to print, be sure to set your printer output to 11 x 17.

Poster Downloads

• Employee Rights Under the NLRA poster, 11 x 17 version (pdf)
• Employee Rights Under the NLRA poster, two-page 8.5 x 11 version (pdf)

To meet the basic criteria for a Functional AAP each included business unit or function must:

currently exist and operate autonomously

include at least 50 employees

have its own managing official

have the ability to track and maintain its own personnel activity

The contents of a FAAP are the same as an establishment-based AAP and the contractor’s EEO compliance history from the past three years will be considered during the application period.  Additionally, compliance evaluations of at least two FAAPs during the three year period will be required before renewals will be approved.  During the compliance evaluation process, FAAP contractors must agree to submit personnel activity (i.e. applicant flow, hire, termination, promotion, and compensation data) in a “readable and useable electronic format” like MS Excel or Access.

Detailed requirements of FAAP agreements as well as instructions for requesting one can be found in the directive.  Contact HudsonMann if you need assistance applying for a Functional AAP agreement or assessing the feasibility of this method for your organization.

OFCCP’s announcement reads:

OFCCP Publishes Proposed VEVRAA Regulation Revisions to Strengthen Employment Protections for Veterans

Increasing numbers of veterans are returning from duty in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places around the world only to face substantial obstacles in finding employment. Today, in the spirit of ensuring that all Americans have equal access to good jobs and that America’s workplaces are equitable, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).  The NPRM recommends revisions that strengthen Federal regulations implementing the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (Section 4212), as amended, commonly referred to as VEVRAA.

OFCCP proposes several changes to the requirement that employers doing business with the Federal government engage in specific types of outreach and recruitment that target veterans.  One proposal requires Federal contractors to evaluate annually the effectiveness of their efforts to ensure that protected veterans have access to employment opportunities.  The NPRM also proposes requiring Federal contractors to establish and maintain quantitative data on the number of protected veterans they learn about through job referrals, the number of protected veterans applying for jobs, and the number of protected veterans they hire.  OFCCP’s proposal also requires contractors to establish annual hiring benchmarks based on availability data and other relevant information.  These benchmarks will enable contractors to measure their success in recruiting, employing, and retaining protected veterans.

Another proposal addresses self-identification.  In light of the difficulty identifying a veteran protected by Section 4212, the NPRM suggests requiring Federal contractors to invite veterans to self-identify both pre-and post-offer of employment.

You can submit comments on OFCCP’s NPRM either electronically at http://www.regulations.gov or by mail.  The identification number (RIN) for this NPRM is 1250-AA00.  If you are mailing or hand delivering comments, send them to Debra Carr, Director, Division of Policy, Planning, and Program Development, Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, Room C-3325, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington D.C. 20210.  Indicate RIN number 1250-AA00.

Federal contractors should be prepared for longer, more in-depth desk audits focusing on all aspects of compliance.  Outreach efforts towards veterans and individuals with disabilities, job postings requirements, compensation discrimination and the accessibility of online application systems are areas of increasing importance for OFCCP.  The directive also specifies that at the beginning of a compliance review, the OFCCP will contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) as well as state and local fair employment agencies to “determine the nature, status and outcome of any complaints that have been filed against the contractor at the establishment under review.”

OFCCP is in the process of expanding its focus “to include findings of non-compliance with the laws administered by the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment & Training Services (VETS), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Wage and Hour Division (WHD).”  ACE also calls for each compliance officer “to review the contractor’s compliance history for the past three years” using the OFCCP’s internal database to see if there are any patterns of non-compliance.

All on-site audits under ACE will include a review of the contractor’s compliance with Executive Order 13496.  Federal contractors and subcontractors should review their contracts and subcontracts to ascertain whether they fall under those regulations.

The new ACE procedures replace the formerly used Active Case Management (ACM) system which governed compliance reviews from 2003 – 2010.  ACM limited OFCCP’s focus to cases of systemic discrimination involving 10 or more affected employees.  It only called for full desk audits every 25th review and on-site visits every 50th.  The ACE directive states that “ACM proved to be of limited utility in that it did not allow OFCCP to effectively use all of its investigative tools.”

Amid all of these changes to the compliance review process, a few things remain unchanged.  The Federal Contractor Scheduling System (FCSS) will still be used to select which establishments will be reviewed and the order of the audits.  At the end of the compliance review, contractors will still have the same 24 month exception period in which that establishment will not be audited again.

The ACE directive can be viewed on OFCCP’s website:  http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/directives/dir295.htm Frequently asked questions are available at:  http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/faqs/ACE_faqs.htm

OFCCP has made it clear that eliminating compensation discrimination will be a major priority in FY 2010.  With the proposed rescission of their former compensation guidelines and a new compensation data collection tool in the works, this should come as no surprise to the Federal contracting community.

What is notable is that OFCCP is planning to increase the scope of their compensation focus.  $3.5 million and 11 employees will be allocated towards their new initiative to identify workers misclassified as independent contractors.  This is part of a larger initiative within the Department of Labor that will cost $46 million.  Citing this as an issue in several compliance evaluations, OFCCP states that “Federal contractors who are seeking to skirt the requirements of E.O. 11246 may misclassify their employees as [independent] contractors in order to make the composition of their workforce appear more diverse or to mask discriminatory employment practices.”  OFCCP will develop their investigation process for this misclassification issue during FY 2012 and use the fourth quarter to “establish a baseline measurement of the impact of this initiative.”

The budget request also gives some hints on what the new compensation collection data tool may look like:

“OFCCP plans to develop and implement a web-based compensation data collection tool that would enable the agency to identify indicators of pay disparity among federal contractors.”

Additional details indicate that the tool would collect compensation data from 70,000-110,000 contractors and would likely array the data by job group.  OFCCP is also envisioning more technological improvements at the agency including a “secure compliant web portal” where AAP data would be collected from Federal contractors.

Fiscal Year 2010 OFCCP Enforcement Results

In FY 2010, OFCCP completed 4,960 compliance evaluations; up from 4,000 in FY 2009 and representing the most compliance evaluations since FY 2004.  A 32% increase in the number of audits ending in conciliation agreements brought the total to 919 compared to 694 in FY 2009.  The amount of financial recoveries rose from around $9M to $9.75M, even though the number of workers recompensed dropped from 21,839 in FY 2009 to 12,397 in FY 2010.

The estimated number of compliance evaluations for FY 2011 is lower at 3,500, but is targeted to increase to 3,675 in FY 2012.  OFCCP says that this decrease is “critical to implementing the fundamental changes to OFCCP’s new, comprehensive and multi-faceted enforcement strategy.”  Read: fewer, more in-depth compliance evaluations with more on-site visits. The recently released Active Case Enforcement directive will govern this strategy.

Functional AAPs are Coming Back

A recent webchat regarding the 2012 budget revealed that a revamped functional AAP unit is in the works.  OFCCP Director Patricia Shiu indicated that a new directive is forthcoming that will outline a new process for contractors to request approval for functional AAPs and by which they will be evaluated for compliance.

To view the budget request visit:  http://www.dol.gov/dol/budget/2012/PDF/CBJ-2012-V2-04.pdf

Indianapolis, IN USA – February 22, 2011 -The goal for most companies is to grow, thrive and make a difference. As many businesses and organizations are learning, diversity and inclusion are directly connected to their success. Attracting, hiring and retaining diverse candidates as well as military and veterans require a commitment by managers and employers.

DirectEmployers Association, a nonprofit HR consortium formed by leading global employers committed to improving labor market efficiency, and HudsonMann Inc., a leader in the Affirmative Action Plan outsourcing and compliance, are excited to announce their strategic partnership.

The primary focus of the partnership will be in knowledge-sharing and training development,” stated Allen Hudson, Account Manager, HudsonMann. “The overlapping client and member bases of HudsonMann and DirectEmployers share similar concerns related to Affirmative Action compliance and enforcement trends at the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). The partnership will allow the organizations to leverage each others’ expertise to exceed the needs of their members or customers and prospects.”

Breaking news items and compliance trends analysis will be shared between DirectEmployers and HudsonMann and distributed in better-than-ever newsletters, videos and other media.

“Future collaborations that are being explored include co-authored training sessions and the integration of Internet-based technologies for companies that are clients of both HudsonMann and members of DirectEmployers,” expressed Shannon Offord, Director of Business Development for DirectEmployers.

About DirectEmployers:
DirectEmployers Association is a nonprofit HR consortium of leading global employers formed to improve labor market efficiency through the sharing of best practices, research and the development of technology.

Their Direct Compliance solution provides member companies with a comprehensive suite of programs and services that assist with Jobs for Veterans Act (JVA) job posting requirements. DirectEmployers Association Member jobs are indexed directly from their corporate career sites and made available to veterans and state workforce agencies through the JobCentral National Labor Exchange (NLX) and VetCentral. Additional information can be found at www.directemployers.org/about.

About HudsonMann:
Founded in 1993, HudsonMann provides Affirmative Action Plan outsourcing, OFCCP audit support, training, and consulting services to the Federal contracting community.

HudsonMann’s HRCI-certified Affirmative Action Specialists provide customized, year-round support to companies across all industries that range in size from 50 employees to Fortune 500 giants. Their iPlans™ Affirmative Action Outsourcing services combine compliant AAPs, a revolutionary online-delivery system, OFCCP audit support and outstanding customer service. Additional information can be found at www.hudsonmann.com.

Press Contact:

Nancy Holland
DirectEmployers Association
nancy@directemployers.com
317-874-9022

Allen Hudson
HudsonMann
ahudson@hudsonmann.com
843-884-5557 ext. 228

1) Updating veterans’ protection regulations:

OFCCP initially planned to release a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) titled “Affirmative Action and Nondiscrimination Obligations of Contractors and Subcontractors; Evaluation of Recruitment and Placement Results Under the VEVRAA of 1974, As Amended” in January.  At the time of this posting it has still not been published.

The NPRM would require that Federal contractors and subcontractors use “numerical targets to measure the effectiveness of affirmative action efforts” toward veterans and make revisions to recordkeeping requirements.  This would be a significant addition to the current affirmative action requirements for veterans which do not include any kind of numerical targets or statistical analysis.

2) New compensation data collection tool:

In light of OFCCP’s pending cancellation of their former compensation guidance, they are looking for a new method of collecting compensation data during their compliance reviews.  The Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) scheduled to be released in February “will seek input from stakeholders on issues relating to the scope, content, and format of the tool to ensure that it is an effective and efficient data collection instrument.”

OFCCP’s vision for the tool would allow them to conduct “establishment-specific, contractor-wide, and industry-wide analyses” to help eliminate gender and race-based compensation discrimination.  The potential scope of this tool, along with recent (failed) legislative efforts, hint that the proposed tool may resemble the old Equal Opportunity (EO) Survey.

3) Construction Contractor Affirmative Action Requirements

The NPRM will update the Executive Order 11246 regulations which were last revised in 1980.  Among other things, the new regulations would seek to “remove outdated regulatory provisions” and “propose a new method for establishing affirmative action goals” – a process that is unwieldy in its present state.

OFCCP’s regulatory agenda notes that when these regulations are implemented “there may be some additional costs to contractors as a result of the increased scope of required actions.” The NPRM is scheduled for release in July.

4) Updating Affirmative Action regulations for individuals with disabilities:

Based on comments they received to their ANPRM last year, OFCCP plans to issue a NPRM in August titled “Affirmative Action and Nondiscrimination Obligations of Contractors and Subcontractors: Evaluation of Recruitment and Placement Results Under Section 503.”  These regulations will require Federal contractors to increase “linkages” with organizations that serve individuals with disabilities and “conduct more substantive analyses of recruitment and placement actions taken” towards individuals with disabilities.  Recordkeeping requirements would also be changed.

Subscribe to our newsletter to stay informed as these changes are rolled out.

To see OFCCP’s published regulatory agenda, go to:  http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/DOL_Fall_2010_Regulatory_Agenda.pdf#page76