The OFCCP Week in Review (WIR) is a simple, fast and direct summary of relevant happenings in the OFCCP regulatory environment, authored by experts John C. Fox, Candee Chambers and Jennifer Polcer. In today’s edition, they discuss:
- Healthcare Employers–Comments Required
- MOU Signed Between OFCCP and NILG
- DOL Budget for 2019–Signed, Sealed and Delivered!
- Reminder: October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM)
Thursday, September 27, 2018: Healthcare Employers–Comments Requested
The Wage & Hour Division of the Department of Labor issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and is seeking comments through November 26, 2018.
The Goal
To enhance employment, training, and apprenticeship opportunities for 16 and 17-year-olds in health care occupations.
The Proposal
To remove from the Department’s Hazardous Occupations Orders (HOs) the operation of patient lifts.
The Reason
As stated in the Proposal, patient lifts substantially differ in form and function from the other equipment that the HO governs, including forklifts, backhoes, cranes, and other heavy industrial equipment. Additionally, patient lifts are safer for workers than the alternative method of manually lifting patients.
Comments?
For or against? Speak up by submitting a comment here.
Thursday, September 27, 2018: MOU Signed Between OFCCP and NILG
The signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the National Industry Liaison Group (NILG) and OFCCP sets forth mutual goals to:
- Work together to support contractor education & training;
- Enable voluntary compliance with OFCCP’s regulations;
- Minimize, to the extent feasible, the cost of compliance by contractors;
- Explore how individual contractors have successfully implemented and appropriately used apprenticeship programs as affirmative action and equal employment opportunity tools to help develop a pipeline of diverse workers; and
- Improve the relevance, clarity, accuracy, and consistency of OFCCP’s contractor education and compliance tools and resources.
Both groups have agreed to numerous commitments to collaborate on efforts focusing on transparency, feedback and mutual participation in various events. If you are not currently involved with your local ILG, now is the time! You can reach out to regional board members to find an ILG near you.
The ILG National Conference, at which OFCCP has committed to providing input to and participation in, will be held July 30 – August 2, 2019, in Milwaukee, WI.
Friday, September 28, 2018: DOL Budget for 2019–Signed, Sealed and Delivered!
On Friday September 28, President Trump signed into law the “minibus” funding bill, which includes the Department of Defense (DOD), the Labor, Health and Human Services (LHHS) and Education Appropriations bills for fiscal year 2019 (which begins October 1, 2018), as well as a short-term Continuing Resolution (CR) to temporarily fund remaining government programs until December 7, 2018.
Congress has now approved 75% of all annual discretionary funding before the end of the fiscal year on September 30th – a critical step in returning to the regular federal funding process, and an achievement that has not occurred in over two decades. This is also the first time in over 20 years that Congress has passed a LHHS bill before the end of the fiscal year, and the first time in over ten years it has passed a DOD bill before the end of the fiscal year.
OFCCP now has $103,476,000 for salaries and expenses. We did a breakdown of the bill with links to more specifics last week.
Reminder: October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM)
The 2018 theme for National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) is “America’s Workforce: Empowering All.” The Campaign, led by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), encourages organizations of all sizes and in all industries to participate. Its true spirit lies in the many observances held at the grassroots level across the nation every year.
Suggestions range from simple, such as putting up a poster, to comprehensive, such as implementing a disability education program. In whatever way you choose to take part, you will be playing an important role in fostering a more inclusive workforce, one that recognizes every person for his or her abilities – every day of every month!
Subscribe to the Campaign blog here, where you can also read about “Inclusive Apprenticeship Programs: Bridging the Technology Skills Gap.”
NDEAM Quick Links
THIS COLUMN IS MEANT TO ASSIST IN A GENERAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE CURRENT LAW AND PRACTICE RELATING TO OFCCP. IT IS NOT TO BE REGARDED AS LEGAL ADVICE. COMPANIES OR INDIVIDUALS WITH PARTICULAR QUESTIONS SHOULD SEEK ADVICE OF COUNSEL.
