The Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has published a formal proposal to once again revise the rules the agency follows for resolving alleged material violations discovered during a compliance evaluation. The proposed rule would amend the Enforcement Rule issued by the Trump OFCCP in late 2020 that established a framework regarding how discrimination allegations are identified, documented, and communicated to federal contractors, through the use of predetermination notices (PDNs) and notices of violation (NOVs).
According to OFCCP, the 2020 Enforcement Rule imposes unnecessary hurdles to “the effective exercise of OFCCP’s enforcement discretion,” and thus OFCCP now “seeks to restore the flexibility” it had prior to issuance of the 2020 rule.
As was the case with the 2020 rule, OFCCP is proposing to retain the requirement that it issue PDNs in cases where the agency has identified preliminary indicators of discrimination. At the same time, however, OFCCP is proposing to eliminate the entire evidentiary and legal framework contained in the 2020 rule as to when a PDN should be issued, and what the PDN must contain.
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC) can read more here.