On April 15, 2025, a group of former U.S. Department of Labor officials issued an “open letter” urging federal contractors to continue voluntary diversity practices, including conducting self-assessments, despite the Trump...more
4/16/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
OFCCP ,
Title VII ,
Trump Administration
On March 24, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the appointment of Catherine Eschbach as director of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), signaling a new chapter for the agency following the...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has been granted judicial leave to intervene in the American Alliance for Equal Rights’ (AAER) suit against the State of Illinois challenging the state’s diversity, equity, and inclusion...more
3/13/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Diversity ,
Equal Protection ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Nonprofits ,
Race Discrimination ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College
On November 15, 2024, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published its Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL), identifying 2,000 establishments of federal supply and service contractors and...more
On June 7, 2024, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published its Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL), identifying 500 establishments of federal supply and service contractors and...more
The Supreme Court of the United States declined to review a case alleging that facially race-neutral admissions criteria at a selective Virginia public high school were unlawfully intended to strike a racial balance, leaving...more
2/23/2024
/ Admissions ,
Affirmative Action ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Equal Protection ,
Legal History ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Public Schools ,
Racial Bias ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College
During recent oral arguments in a case that could shift the balance in employment discrimination cases and impact employer diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives,...more
This article is the first part of Ogletree Deakins’ series, “DEI Under Scrutiny,” which examines the evolving employment law landscape for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in the United States....more
12/1/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Discrimination ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employment Policies ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Contractors ,
OFCCP ,
Risk Assessment ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Title VII
The Supreme Court of the United States’ recent decision to strike down affirmative action admissions policies in higher education is having significant indirect consequences for private employers and their diversity, equity,...more
8/10/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Department of Education ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Equal Protection ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Hiring & Firing ,
SCOTUS ,
State Attorneys General ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Title VII
On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States struck down affirmative action in college admissions, leaving employers to wrestle with the implications of the decision for various diversity, equity, and inclusion...more
7/21/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Comment Period ,
Disparate Impact ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
EEO-1 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Policies ,
Ethnicity ,
Hiring & Firing ,
OMB ,
Race Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Working Groups
On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States held that certain race-conscious college admissions policies violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which prohibits discrimination based on...more
6/30/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Diversity ,
Educational Institutions ,
Equal Protection ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Race Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Title VI ,
Universities
As part of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs’ (OFCCP) continued focus on the construction industry amid the Biden administration’s infrastructure push, the agency is homing in on...more
5/23/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Biden Administration ,
Compliance ,
Construction Industry ,
Construction Project ,
CSALs ,
Federal Contractors ,
Infrastructure ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
OFCCP ,
Public Projects ,
Subcontractors
The White House recently launched an effort to revise and update the statistical standards for race and ethnicity data collection across federal agencies with a stated goal of better reflecting the growing diversity of people...more
2/15/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Biden Administration ,
Comment Period ,
Diversity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
OMB ,
Public Agencies ,
Public Employees ,
Statistical Analysis
As we reported earlier this year, on August 31, 2021, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved the new system that the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) developed for federal contractors to...more
On July 1, 2021, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published a Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL identifying 750 Supply and Service establishment-based full compliance evaluations,...more
Despite a global pandemic, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) kept an unrelenting pace of activity in 2020. Below are the highlights from the year, and a summary of what federal contractors and...more
2/1/2021
/ Affirmative Action ,
Compliance ,
Conciliation ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
CSALs ,
Department of Veterans Affairs ,
Disability ,
Federal Contractors ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
OFCCP ,
Pay Data ,
Race Relations ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sexual Stereotyping ,
TRICARE ,
Veterans ,
Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA)
On September 11, 2020, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published a Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL) of “Supply & Service” contractors and subcontractors and, for the first time, a CSAL...more
Here are the latest developments from the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP).
OFCCP Issues New FAQ on Counting Non-Binary Employees -
OFCCP recently answered a new...more
In an effort to facilitate response efforts for COVID-19, Director Craig Leen of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced that it is issuing a national interest exemption on March 17, 2020, to new...more
On October 11, 2019, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published to its website the long-awaited Educational Institutions Technical Assistance Guide (TAG). According to OFCCP, the 80-page TAG,...more
On March 27, 2019, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (VEVRAA) hiring benchmark for 2019. Effective March 31, 2019, the hiring...more
On March 25, 2019, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published a list of contractors and subcontractors identified for a potential compliance evaluation in Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 (which will end on...more
On March 8, 2019, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced that it has published a landing page containing information about Section 503 focused reviews. OFCCP touts the new landing page as a...more
On February 22, 2019, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced that it is on schedule to post its next Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL) in March 2019. The Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 CSAL...more
In August 2018, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued Directive 2018-04, which notified contractors that it was “in the process of implementing a comprehensive initiative that seeks to ensure...more