Press
Reputable employment law publications and press frequently seek Roffman Horvitz's opinions on a variety of relevant topics.
Contractors Can Better Meet OFCCP Requirements with New Portal
Associated General Contractors of Alaska - Alissa Horvitz, member attorney of Virginia-based law firm Roffman Horvitz, PLC, says the portal will allow OFCCP to compile a more accurate database that allows them a full view of the layer below the direct contractor. Though there aren’t currently any detailed consequences for violating reporting regulations, she emphasizes the importance of timely reporting as a way to ensure prime contractors continue to comply with regulatory requirements.
Labor Agency’s AI Hiring Disclosure Requests Vex Contractors
Bloomberg Law - “Obviously, the OFCCP is very concerned that somehow employers are using artificial intelligence to weed out candidates who would otherwise be qualified,” said Alissa Horvitz, an attorney at Roffman Horvitz PLC representing government contractors. “I just think that my clients don’t have a sense of what the artificial intelligence is.”
Postponed Deadline for EEO-1 Reports May Irritate Employers
Society for Human Resource Management - "Employers value certainty in deadlines, and when government agencies keep changing them, it's harder to plan, and it inevitably creates anxiety for some affected portion of the reporting population," said Alissa Horvitz, an attorney with Roffman Horvitz in McLean, Va.
OFCCP’s Release of EEO-1 Data Concerns Federal Contractors
Society for Human Resource Management - The data is between three and seven years old, noted Alissa Horvitz, an attorney with Roffman Horvitz in McLean, Va. "The problem that executive agencies are facing is that a smaller and smaller number of employers are willing to undertake the massive initial investment to become government contractors and comply with complicated regulatory requirements," she added. "Fewer and fewer organizations are willing to do business with the government because of all the obstacles, so the government has no choice but to keep contracting with the remaining companies that are left in that industry, whatever their diversity data looks like.
OFCCP Scales Back Religious Exemption
Society for Human Resource Management - The 2020 rule expanded the religious exemption by letting for-profit organizations claim the exemption if they could show that their businesses aimed to promote their religious values, said Alissa Horvitz, an attorney with Roffman Horvitz in McLean, Va.
OFCCP Seeks to Gather Much More Information During Audits
Society for Human Resource Management - The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has proposed changes to its scheduling letters for audits of federal contractors that would require contractors to share much more information with the agency.
Tight Labor Market’s Recruitment Focus Puts Pay Equity at Risk
Bloomberg - Efforts at achieving pay equity are in danger of falling by the wayside as the tight labor market forces employers to boost salary offers to attract much-needed talent.
OFCCP Will Speed Up Audits
Society for Human Resource Management - The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) recently issued a directive that will eliminate delays in scheduling audits as well as the automatic 30-day extension to submit items requested in audit scheduling letters.
Federal Contractors Bracing for More Government Pay Bias Probes
Bloomberg Law - Proposal lowers standard for bringing preliminary bias claims...
OFCCP Compensation Directive Focuses on Pay Equity Audits
Society for Human Resource Management - "In order to ensure that they are evaluating employee groupings of similarly situated employees, most organizations should be analyzing pay by job titles, and they should be prepared to submit that analysis to the OFCCP," said Joshua Roffman, an attorney with Roffman Horvitz PLC in McLean, Va. "To the extent that analysis shows disparities, the employer also should show that it investigated and addressed any areas flagged in that analysis."
Pay Audits Get Closer Look From Federal Contractor Watchdog (2)
Bloomberg Law - The U.S. Department of Labor’s federal contractor watchdog issued a new directive that would more closely scrutinize the pay equity audits of companies that work with the federal government.
OFCCP Will Open Portal for Certification of Compliance Soon
Society for Human Resource Management - Federal contractors' certification of compliance on the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) Contractor Portal starts March 31, and contractors can take steps now to prepare to comply.
Timetable for OFCCP Contractor Portal Is Set, but Questions Remain
Society for Human Resource Management - Federal contractors can start getting their affirmative action programs (AAPs) in order prior to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs' (OFCCP's) June 30 deadline to certify their AAP status. But many questions remain about the OFCCP Contractor Portal.
Subcontractors Gear Up for More Bias Audits as U.S. Plans Rule
Bloomberg Law - Federal subcontractors are bracing for Biden administration plans that would allow the U.S. Labor Department to more easily target them for audits aimed at exposing workplace discrimination and affirmative action violations.
U.S. Contractors Scramble After Court Halts Biden’s Shot Mandate
Bloomberg Law - A nationwide block on the Biden administration’s Covid-19 vaccine mandate for millions of federal contractor workers sparked confusion for their employers and signals a threat to future executive orders aimed at businesses with government pacts.
Contractor Workers Must Get Vaccine by Dec. 8, White House Says
Bloomberg Law - Federal contractor employees must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 by Dec. 8 unless they’re granted a legal accommodation, under new White House guidance released Friday...
OMB Approves OFCCP’s Affirmative Action Program Verification Interface
OutSolve - On August 31, 2021, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) gave Final Notification that the OFCCP’s Affirmative Action Program Verification Interface (AAP-VI) was approved...
As Workplaces Reopen, Keep an Eye on Pay Equity
Society for Human Resource Management - As laid-off and furloughed workers return to the workplace, it may be time for employers to conduct pay equity audits. Women and people of color were more likely to lose their jobs as companies shut down during the pandemic, and their pay may now be unevenly matched to that of their peers...
Federal Contractors Wary of Push for Biden Ban on Arbitration
Bloomberg Law - President Joe Biden is being asked to ban mandatory arbitration clauses for federal contract workers via executive order, a tactic that could allow him to circumvent a razor-thin Democratic majority in the Senate and enact a pro-worker policy closely watched by lawmakers, attorneys, and shareholders...
Expect OFCCP to Focus More on Pay Equity and Data Collection
Society for Human Resource Management - "When the OFCCP is more transparent with its evidence, I suspect that more government contractors will be willing to engage the OFCCP in productive discussions about remedying and resolving problems, rather than refusing to conciliate the alleged violation, which would send the matter to administrative enforcement," said Alissa Horvitz, an attorney with Roffman Horvitz in McLean, Va. "If the OFCCP has a strong case of discrimination, I suspect it will motivate more employers to settle than litigate."
Prospect of Affirmative Action Checks Worries U.S. Contractors
Bloomberg Law - The U.S. Labor Department is looking at ways to verify that federal contractors are setting required affirmative action goals, a move that has companies worried about handing over more sensitive workforce data to the government...
OFCCP Seeks Input on Proposed Affirmative Action Program Initiative
Society for Human Resource Management - The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) recently proposed that federal contractors annually certify to the agency their obligation to update affirmative action programs (AAPs) each year...
Trump Breaks Tradition With Microsoft-Wells Fargo Race Inquiry
Bloomberg News - A U.S. inquiry into whether Microsoft Corp. and Wells Fargo & Co. broke workplace civil rights laws by seeking to double their ranks of Black leaders is at odds with normal Labor Department practice, including the enforcement of a decades-old executive order on affirmative action, legal experts said...
Oracle's Win Over DOL Will Shake Up Pay Equity Enforcement
Bloomberg Law - Oracle's victory in a Labor Department pay discrimination lawsuit dealt a blow to how the agency scrutinizes federal contractors' compensation practices and will likely alter how it litigates cases alleging unfair pay based on race and sex, lawyers said...
OutSolve to Host Free Pay Equity Webinar with Special Guest Josh Roffman of Roffman Horvitz
OutSolve - Josh Roffman of Roffman Horvitz will present important pay equity updates in, The Latest in Pay Equity and Compensation Compliance webinar...
OutSolve Announces Strategic Partnership with Roffman Horvitz, PLC
OutSolve - The two companies come together to give employers the tools they need to stay in step with evolving pay and anti-discrimination laws...
How Do the EEOC and OFCCP Use EEO-1 Reports?
Society for Human Resource Management - The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) require employers to file the EEO-1 report annually, with additional pay-data information due Sept. 30 this year. But what purpose does the EEO-1 serve? Here is an overview of how the agencies may use both of the report's components, 1 and 2...
OFCCP Will Cooperate with Federal Contractors Ahead of Pay Audits
Society for Human Resource Management - The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) will make pay audits of federal contractors less contentious by collaborating with contractors on the pay groups they use to identify race- or sex-based disparities in compensation....
Overtime Rule May Be Issued Faster Under New DOL Leadership
Society for Human Resource Management - Employers can expect to see change more quickly at the Department of Labor (DOL), including issuance of a final overtime rule perhaps as soon as year's end, under the new leadership of Acting Labor Secretary Patrick Pizzella, who will likely move ahead with his efforts as the nomination process for Eugene Scalia proceeds...
Employers Must Report 2017 and 2018 EEO-1 Pay Data
Society for Human Resource Management - The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has announced that employers must report pay data, broken down by race, sex and ethnicity, from 2017 and 2018 payrolls. The pay data reports are due Sept. 30...
OFCCP Directives Will Result in More Audits
Society for Human Resource Management - The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has issued new directives that will result in speedier audits of federal contractors in 2019 and, thus, more of them....
OFCCP Guidance Clarifies Valid Pay Equity Factors
Society for Human Resource Management - Compensation disparities among federal contractors may not be due to discriminatory factors such as gender or race, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) noted in recent guidance that rescinded a prior directive...
Dodge These Frequent EEO-1 Report Mistakes Before It's Too Late
Society for Human Resource Management - Now that employers have until June 1 to complete EEO-1 reports, they have extra time to avoid filing mistakes—especially those that commonly arise following mergers and acquisitions or the closure of a location...
Resist the Temptation to Move Applicants from One Requisition to Another
LocalJobNetwork.com - This article discusses the trend by electronic applicant tracking systems to permit recruiters greater flexibility in moving applicants, who applied under one requisition, into a different requisition, so that the applicant may be considered for the same job at a later date or for other roles besides the one to which he or she applied...
Review Affirmative Action Plans in Response to Audit Letters
Society for Human Resource Management - Federal contractors that got an advance audit notice from the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) should prepare for top-to-bottom OFCCP reviews of their affirmative action plans by conducting self-audits...
New OFCCP Director Urged to Train Staff
Society for Human Resource Management - Federal contractors that got an advance audit notice from the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) should prepare for top-to-bottom OFCCP reviews of their affirmative action plans by conducting self-audits...
Google Wins Round One in Fair Pay Act Litigation
Society for Human Resource Management - It's back to the drawing board for employees who brought a class action against Google, alleging that the company had a policy of paying women less than men for substantially similar work...
Extension for VETS-4212 Gives Employers Time to File Correctly
Society for Human Resource Management - Although the path of destruction left by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma was confined to a few states, federal contractors nationwide have until Nov. 15 to file the VETS-4212 form, which tracks their efforts to employ veterans, instead of the usual Sept. 30 for the annual form, the Department of Labor announced on its website. This gives contractors time to make sure their filings are in order, attorneys say...
OFCCP Awarded Access to Some Personal Contact Information at Google
Society for Human Resource Management - In its ongoing audit of the compensation practices at Google, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) won access to at least 5,000 workers' personal contact information for those employed in 2014 or 2015...
Trump Blocks 'Blacklisting Rule'
Society for Human Resource Management - President Donald Trump signed a resolution to permanently block the so-called blacklisting regulations that would have required federal contractors to report labor violations and that prevented them from receiving contracts if they had serious infractions...
Effective Self-Assessment of Outreach Efforts Pursuant to OFCCP's Veteran and Disability Regulations
LocalJobNetwork.com - Regardless of where the Trump Administration takes the OFCCP, it seems likely that meaningful outreach for veterans and individuals with disabilities will remain a priority. Government contractors need to be mindful of what the regulations require as to the assessment of that outreach, what proof OFCCP is likely to ask for in an audit, and how contractors can meet these obligations...
Google Stands Up to OFCCP in Compensation Lawsuit
Society for Human Resource Management - Google has provided the Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) with "hundreds of thousands of records" over the last year but was sued Dec. 29 for not handing over documents that would reveal private employee contact information, according to the technology company...
11th-Hour Attempt to Block the Blacklisting Rule Filed
Society for Human Resource Management - The Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule—sometimes referred to as the "blacklisting rule" since it potentially could lead to barring federal contractors from contracts—starts to take effect Oct. 25, unless a motion for an emergency temporary restraining order (TRO) filed Oct. 13 succeeds in blocking the regulation...
Contractors Will Need to Ramp Up to Satisfy Final 'Blacklisting' Rule
Society for Human Resource Management - Compliance with the final "blacklisting" regulations will require greater interdepartmental cooperation and perhaps designation of one person at a company to oversee disclosures of labor law violations to compliance advisors at numerous federal agencies...
EEOC Digs In with Its EEO-1 Pay Data Proposal
Society for Human Resource Management - A newly proposed deadline of March 31, 2018, for EEO-1 reports to include pay data isn't as far off as it sounds...
HR's Role in Pay Analyses
Society for Human Resource Management - Analyses on compensation equity can't go forward without HR but shouldn't be handled by HR alone...
New DOL Rule Gives Agency Broader License to Sue for Pay Discrimination
Society for Human Resource Management - Department of Labor (DOL) sex discrimination regulations for federal contractors—updated for the first time in 40 years on June 14—will increase pay discrimination claims, according to management attorneys...
DOL Cracks Down on Company's Use of Hiring Tests
Society for Human Resource Management - In an all-too-common situation, an HR professional is shocked to discover that managers at the organization are using pre-employment tests without HR's permission...
The Evolution of the Tagline at the Bottom of Job Advertisements: The Demise of the Affirmative Action Reference
Society for Human Resource Management - Decades ago, long before employers used the Internet for recruiting, employers used to advertise job vacancies in the newspaper. The OFCCP knows this because its current sex discrimination guidelines reference the old newspaper way of recruiting...
SHRM Objects to EEOC's Collection of W-2 Wage Information
Society for Human Resource Management - The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) wants to collect information from employees' W-2 forms in an attempt to compare pay and find possible pay discrimination in companies...
OFCCP's New Class Member Locator Database and DOL's Proposed Blacklisting Rule Guidance
LocalJobNetwork.com - The vast majority of contractors that have been cited by OFCCP for violations involving discrimination have been willing to enter into voluntary conciliation agreements to resolve their compliance reviews. OFCCP's statistics bear that out. Out of thousands of compliance reviews every year, most of them are resolved with a Notice of Compliance...
Pay Transparency Rule Does Not Apply to HR in All Situations
Society for Human Resource Management - In yet another rule applying to federal contractors, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) clarified that its freshly minted pay transparency regulations do not protect HR professionals when acting as guardians of compensation information...
OFCCP Finalizes Pay Transparency Rule
Bloomberg BNA Daily Labor Report - OFCCP's final rule bars federal contractors from discriminating against employees and applicants who discuss, disclose or inquire about pay. The final rule applies to covered federal contracts entered into or modified on or after Jan. 11, 2016...
Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces: Proposed Regulations and Department of Labor Guidance (Part II)
LocalJobNetwork.com - On May 28, 2015, pursuant to Executive Order 13673, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). The Department of Labor (DOL) supplemented the proposed rule with its guidance ("DOL Guidance"). As expected, the proposed rule seeks to impose unprecedented employment and labor obligations on companies that wish to sell goods or perform services for the federal government. Comments are due by July 27, 2015...
Fair Pay & Safe Workplaces Executive Order)
LocalJobNetwork.com - On July 31, 2014, President Obama released Executive Order 13673, known as the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order. The theme of the Executive Order is that when the U.S. federal government is going to use taxpayer dollars to buy goods and services from government contractor companies, the taxpayers' dollars should not be used to buy from companies that engage in repeated, pervasive, serious or willful violations of our employment laws...
Veteran Benchmark Won't Change Until 2016 for Calendar-Year Plans
Society for Human Resource Management - This article discusses the April 21, 2015 lowering of the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 hiring benchmark for veterans from 7.2 percent to 7 percent...
Transgender Workers Protected in Sex Discrimination Rule Revamp
Business Insurance - New guidelines for federal contractors to follow to avoid sex discrimination are long overdue and will align the rules with developments since they were issued in 1970...
OFCCP Issues Proposal to Update Outdated Sex Bias Rules to conform With Current Law
Bloomberg BNA Daily Labor Report - Proposal would update OFCCP's 40-year-old sex discrimination rules under Executive Order 11,246 to conform with current Title VII law and interpretations...
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