On September 7, 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) sent 750 courtesy scheduling announcement letters (CSAL’s) to federal contractors notifying them that their affirmative action plans (AAP) may be audited. These CSAL’s supplement the 1,000 CSAL’s sent out earlier this year.

The current CSAL provides contractors a 45-day courtesy notice prior to the OFCCP beginning to send Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved scheduling letters. After receiving the OMB approved scheduling letter, contractors will have the standard 30 days to submit their AAP. As a result, all contractors on the current list are receiving a minimum of 75 days advance notice to have their AAP’s ready. The OFCCP has indicated that it will also grant a one-time 30-day extension for supporting data where AAPs are provided timely. 

When combining the FY2018 First Release with this supplemental scheduling list, OFCCP limited its scheduling to no more than 10 establishments of any parent company.  In addition, no more than four establishments of a single contractor are included in a single district office on this supplement.

The supplement includes 445 companies, 69 Corporate Management Compliance Evaluations (CMCEs), and 66 Functional Affirmative Action Programs (FAAP) functional units. Universities were not included in this supplement. However, no establishment that received a CSAL, concluded a review, or concluded progress report monitoring resulting from a conciliation agreement or consent decree, within the last five years, is included on this supplement.

Because of the issuance of the new CSAL’s, federal contractors and subcontractors should advise each establishment within their company to be on the alert for these OFCCP notifications and the appropriate procedure to follow should a notice be received (e.g. if a notice is  received to immediately notify human resources department to allow them sufficient time to prepare for a potential audit).

Given this regulatory activity, contractors  should at a minimum:

• Collect copies of Affirmative Action Plans for the current and prior year and raw data concerning applicants, hires, terminations, promotions and employee compensation.
• Perform an analysis to determine whether the entity complies with all federal affirmative action requirements.
• Prepare an Impact Ratio Analysis using its raw data to determine whether women, minority and individual minority groups experience an adverse impact in hiring, promotion or termination.
• Prepare a compensation analysis to determine if existing wage disparities exist based on race or gender; and, if disparities exist, determine whether they are defensible.
• Gather documentation of outreach efforts in job groups that do not meet availability percentages with women and minorities.
• Gather documentation of outreach efforts regarding veterans and individuals with disabilities.
• Gather any EEO-1 Reports and Vets 4212 Reports that have been filed for the previous three years.

Federal contractors or subcontractors who receive an OFCCP audit notice should consult with experienced to ensure that the company's affirmative action plan satisfies all requirements.

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