Likely even more important, President Obama also issued today a memo directing the DOL to publish proposed regulations within 120 days that would require federal contractors and subcontractors to submit to OFCCP pay, race and gender data on their employees. The new EO directs the Secretary of Labor to publish within 160 days proposed regulations which would apply to federal contracts and subcontracts entered into after their effective date. Notably, this provision does not apply to employees who have access to such information as part of their essential job duties (such as employees in HR or Compensation) and who make unauthorized disclosure of the information. Today, on National Pay Equity Day – the day which symbolizes how far into 2014 women must work to earn what men earned in 2013 – the President amended Executive Order 11246 to prohibit discrimination or retaliation against “any employee or applicant because such employee or applicant has inquired about, discussed, or disclosed the compensation of the employee or applicant or another employee or applicant.” Why?Įnsuring that employees of Federal contractors may discuss their compensation without fear of adverse action will enhance the ability of Federal contractors and their employees to detect and remediate unlawful discriminatory practices, which will contribute to a more efficient market in Federal contracting.
Based on his action today, two new obligations will soon apply to contractors, both concerning the administration’s increased efforts to uncover and eradicate pay discrimination. On February 12, President Obama signed an executive order bumping the minimum wage for at least some federal contractor employees to $10.10 an hour, raising many questions which we discussed here. Its getting harder to be a Federal contractor.
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