OFCCP & EEOC Compliance

Ensuring Fair Employment Practices

For America's Workforce

 

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contractor Compliance Programs (OFCCP) protects workers, promotes diversity, and enforces the laws and regulations of equal opportunity in the workplace. The OFCCP holds those companies who do business with the federal government (commonly referred to as contractors and subcontractors) true to the responsibilities of affirmative action – and takes a stand against discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

 

The origins of OFCCP can be traced back to the 1940s through a series of executive orders enacted by presidents, including Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and Johnson. The agency as it stands today was created in 1978 through written instructions by former President Jimmy Carter, and is governed by three equal employment opportunity laws:

Executive Order 11246

  • Signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 24, 1965, this order prohibits workplace discrimination and requires affirmative action based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin. It also promotes pay transparency by, in certain circumstances, making it illegal to terminate, discipline, or otherwise discriminate against applicants and employees inquiring about, discussing, or disclosing compensation.

Section 503 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973

  • Enacted in September of 1973 by President Richard Nixon, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities, requires states and employers to provide priority of service to applicants with disabilities, directs employers to ask job applicants to self-identify as a disabled person, and instructs federal contractors and subcontracted employers to perform outreach to disabled populations.

 

Vietnam Era Veterans'
Readjustment Assistance
Act (VEVRAA) of 1974

  • Known as the Jobs for Veterans Act, these regulations require that state workforce agencies provide priority of service to qualified and covered veterans, and that employers ask applicants to self-identify as a veteran. It further stipulates a Mandatory Job Listing requirement, and dictates that prime federal and subcontracted employers must immediately and concurrently list and prove that all open listings have been filed with state and local workforce job banks.

 

 

Recruit Fairly. Hire Fairly. Pay Fairly.

 

 

 

Through the rules enacted in these laws, the OFCCP ensures fair recruiting, hiring, and employment practices by employers who hold federal contracts. As an example, the OFCCP’s Postings & Notice Requirements for Mandatory Job Listings explicitly states that federal contractor employers must send all open job listings to the state labor exchange system (or the local workforce offices) in the state where the job will be performed.

 

To maintain compliance, the federal government randomly audits employer organizations, and if an organization is flagged for auditing, they will ask for proof that all jobs were sent and published on the state job board to confirm the position’s status as a fair hiring opportunity. Geographic Solutions serves as a partner to states and compliance vendors in making sure their Mandatory Job Listings are directly listed with the state job board, taking the highest of measures in both timeliness and accuracy.

 

 

 

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Letting the Numbers

Speak for Themselves

 

When a company sells goods or services to the government, that company is considered a federal contractor (or subcontractor) and must immediately adhere to the Federal Contract Compliance Manual. Acknowledging this manual means that the contractor (employer) must make sure that their jobs are posted on their state’s job bank immediately and concurrently. To put this into perspective and to highlight the importance of OFCCP compliance, every member of the Fortune 500, every healthcare organization, every airline, every automaker, every public research and educational institution, and so forth – fall under the umbrella of a federal contractor or subcontractor.

 

 

325
25
550
2.8
 

 

Additionally, over 50 percent of job listings found on state job boards are from federal contractors and sub-contractors. That is a staggering number when you think of how many employer job listings within your state labor exchange could be flagged for non-compliance.

 

 

The numbers are striking, but what does it mean for states, employers (federal prime or subcontractors) and compliance vendors?

 

What Does the OFCCP Mean to States?

 

States are required, by law, to have their own job bank and to administer priority of service for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. Furthermore, they are required to assist employers with the account registration process, which includes identifying them as a federal contractor within the job bank system.

 

Adherence to OFCCP compliance mutually benefits all stakeholders - employers, states, and the U.S. Department of Labor. Keeping USDOL requirements at the forefront increases the amount of employer registrations on the state job banks - which increases the amount of job listings - which attracts more job ready individuals - which equates to more job placements, decreased unemployment rates, and an increase in federal funding to the state workforce system. Geographic Solutions mitigates the administrative burden of the state by assisting with vetted job file imports from the federal contractor community.

What Does the OFCCP Mean to Employers?

 

In order to retain their federal contracts with the government, federal contractors must list every job opening on the state job board. The employer is required to transmit that data in a manner that is acceptable to the state so that the state can provide priority of service. This can be an often-daunting and cumbersome task for any employer (and their respective human resources department). Each job listing can require a multitude of detailed data points on the vendor's business and financial withstanding.

 

To assist with this matter, employers frequently hire third-party compliance vendors to manage the sending of job listings to all state job boards on behalf of the employers they represent. These third-party vendors use a variety of methods to get data into the state systems. These same compliance vendors work with thousands of employers simultaneously to make sure their jobs are posted and that they do not fall out of compliance.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in excess of $81 million in monetary relief was obtained for employees and job seekers who were discriminated against from October 2016 to September 2019 - the highest three year period on record.

 

The OFCCP and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) operates on and investigates instances of perceived inequality and discrimination for all aspects of workforce. Once a complaint has been filed, it is the OFCCP's role to investigate the matter. That puts the employer under a microscope as the OFCCP looks into the instance to determine whether the job listing/hiring process was offered under equal/non-biased terms. The investigation could take an extensive amount of time, possibly uncovering a litany of noncompliance infractions, and could quickly amount to federal fines.

 

Geographic Solutions can be trusted in ensuring that the very first step is handled with care and accuracy and that employees are protected in the event of an audit.

What Does the OFCCP Mean to Compliance Vendors?

 

Getting off on the right foot is important and a federally-compliant job listing is the first step. All compliance vendors must enter verifiable company information, as well as job opportunities, with the utmost accuracy. A job listing with incorrect information can have a domino effect. Most states require that the employer, or their agent, directly import job listings, and have policies in place forbidding the use of "bots" and overseas data entry. Geographic Solutions is the perfect partner for OFCCP compliance vendors who are attempting to achieve the highest levels of compliance readiness and audit protections for their clients.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Partnering with Geographic Solutions gives assurance that states, employers, and OFCCP compliance vendors remain in line with OFCCP regulations while assisting job seekers in returning to work with dignity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Trusted Leader

In Quality OFCCP-Compliant Job Listings

 

Geographic Solutions is the provider of state labor exchange systems in over 30 states, giving over 180 million individuals access to our client sites and the job listings posted to each system. Geographic Solutions has proprietary methods for employer information aggregation, as well as job listing orders - which have met the approval of our state clients and the OFCCP. Once collected, the information is directly imported into the state job board and made available to job seekers. We have a team of professionals who are dedicated to verifying the accuracy and meeting quality assurance levels of data import process.

 

Keeping Ahead of Regulatory Changes

And Federal Legislation

 

Geographic Solutions has been involved in aggregating quality job data listings for nearly 30 years. In addition to our team of data aggregation programmers, we also employ subject matter experts with years of experience in both federal workforce programs and job listing compliance. 

 

Geographic Solutions has built its business from within the industry, not just with exceptional technical capabilities, but also with the comprehensive understanding of the laws, standards, and practices of our clients and laws that govern their operations. We have long interpreted and implemented the guidelines outlined in the Training and Employment Guidance Letters and many other workforce acts currently in place.

 

Our team stays current with the changing nature of employment and hiring diversity best practices and are fully aware of how the U.S. Department of Labor has been prone to issuing directives that create new programs and make existing programs retroactive. The expectation is that these programs will be implemented in a timely manner. Our team is familiar with this mode of operation, and our developers are capable of making this implementation within the timeframe outlined.

 

Our team rapidly implements legislative changes and enhancements to meet new regulations as they become available.

 

Create a More Fluid and Positive Relationship Between

State Workforce Agencies, Employers, Compliance Vendors, and the OFCCP.

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