On July 29, 2025, Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a memorandum titled “Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination” (the “Memorandum”), responding to the federal government’s recent...more
Federal contractors and subcontractors meeting the VEVRAA eligibility threshold of having 50 or more employees and at least one federal contract totaling $150,000 or more (“Covered Contractors”) must annually file a VETS-4212...more
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...more
8/5/2025
/ Appeals ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EEO-1 ,
Employment Litigation ,
Federal Contractors ,
FOIA ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
OFCCP ,
Trade Secrets
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) has released its 2025 Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (“VEVRAA”) national benchmark. Effective July 30, 2025, the new benchmark is 5.1%, a slight...more
In this episode of The Proskauer Brief partner Guy Brenner, who leads Proskauer’s D.C. Labor & Employment practice and is head of the Government Contractor Compliance Group, and Jonathan Slowik, senior counsel, Labor &...more
7/31/2025
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Automated Decision Systems (ADS) ,
Bias ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Federal Contractors ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Impact Assessments ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State Labor Laws
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...more
On July 1, 2025, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) released three notices of proposed rulemaking that, if adopted, will change federal contractors’ affirmative action obligations....more
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...more
7/7/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Voluntary Disclosure
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...more
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...more
On April 14, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued a preliminary injunction preventing the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) from enforcing a certification provision and termination clause...more
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...more
3/27/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
New Regulations ,
OFCCP ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Trump Administration ,
Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA)
On February 21, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland issued a preliminary injunction pausing enforcement of several provisions of President Trump’s DEI-related executive orders on Ending Radical and...more
On February 21, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland issued a preliminary injunction pausing enforcement of several provisions of President Trump’s DEI-related executive orders on Ending Radical and...more
2/25/2025
/ Constitutional Challenges ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Executive Orders ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fifth Amendment ,
First Amendment ,
Government Agencies ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Separation of Powers
While much of the focus on President Trump’s recent Executive Order on Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (the “EO”) has been on its elimination of race and sex-based affirmative action...more
2/13/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Compliance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Risk Management ,
Trump Administration
According to the National Office Directory for OFCCP, Michael Schloss has been named as the new Acting Director and Deputy Director of Policy of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”). Michele Hodge, who...more
2/3/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Compliance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EBSA ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Retirement Plan ,
Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA)
Following President Trump’s rescission of Executive Order 11246, on January 24, 2025, the Acting Secretary of Labor issued Secretary’s Order 03-2025 (the “Order”), which orders all Department of Labor employees, including...more
1/28/2025
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Compliance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Race Discrimination ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Trump Administration ,
Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA)
On January 23, 2025, the Office of Federal Compliance Programs (OFCCP) sent out its first official agency communication since the issuance of President Trump’s Executive Order (the “Trump Order”) revoking Executive Order...more
On January 21, 2025, President Trump issued a broad executive order titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” (the “Order”), which among other things, rescinds Executive Order (“EO”) 11246....more
1/23/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Compliance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Popular ,
Race Discrimination ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Subcontractors ,
Trump Administration
With President Trump’s second administration set to begin on January 20, 2025, federal contractors and subcontractors are anxiously awaiting what he might do with respect to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs...more
1/15/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Compliance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employee Training ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Religious Exemption ,
Trump Administration
Effective as of January 8, 2025, the FAR Council has withdrawn a proposed rule that would have limited federal contractors from seeking and considering information about job applicants’ compensation history and required...more
1/9/2025
/ Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Job Ads ,
Job Applicants ,
Pay Transparency ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Salary/Wage History
We appear to be on the precipice of another federal government shutdown. Absent a political compromise, the federal government’s funding will run out on December 21, 2024. During previous government shutdowns, government...more
12/20/2024
/ COBRA ,
Compliance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
E-Verify ,
Employment Policies ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Government Agencies ,
Government Shutdown ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Vacation Pay ,
Wage and Hour ,
WARN Act
On October 28, 2024, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) published a notice in the Federal Register informing federal contractors that the agency has received two new Freedom of Information Act...more
On July 26, 2024, OFCCP published Directive 2024-01: Expedited Conciliation Procedures (the “Directive”). The Directive is intended to “outline updated procedures for an expedited conciliation option, giving contractors and...more
8/14/2024
/ Audits ,
Compliance ,
Conciliation ,
Documentation ,
Federal Contractors ,
Final Rules ,
Investigations ,
Jurisdiction ,
Negotiations ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Notice of Violation ,
OFCCP ,
Subcontractors
As we previously reported, federal contractors and subcontractors (“Contractors”) have until July 1, 2024 to certify the status of their Affirmative Action Programs (“AAPs”) with the OFCCP Contractor Portal. Specifically,...more