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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: 202-219-8211
President Clinton has announced he is requesting an
additional $6 million for the Department Of Labor's Office of Federal Contract
Compliance Programs (OFCCP), as part of an Administration-wide civil rights
initiative.
"We at the Department of Labor are pleased to join with the
other civil rights agencies in an effort to promote equal opportunity in the
workplace," said Labor Secretary Alexis M. Herman. "As we celebrate Dr. Martin
Luther King's birthday, the President should be applauded for providing
leadership and the resources necessary to make Dr. King's dream a reality."
The OFCCP, which is part of department's Employment
Standards Administration, enforces the laws that require federal contractors
not to discriminate and to take affirmative action to promote an equal
employment opportunity workplace. The laws are designed to ensure that
taxpayers' dollars do not perpetuate employment discrimination on the basis of
race, gender, national origin, religion, color, disability or status as a
covered veteran. The OFCCP conducts compliance reviews, complaint
investigations, and monitors the contractors' self-audit responsibility. The
agency also works with employers to help them recruit and retain qualified
workers through linkage agreements between contractors and organizations
providing training of qualified workers.
"As we observe Dr. King's birthday, we at the Department of
Labor pledge to redouble our efforts to ensure equal opportunity in the
workplace," said Herman.
The additional funding will enable the OFCCP to implement
its Fair Enforcement Strategy, which includes a tiered review process, upgraded
information technology capability, paperwork reduction and technical assistance
for federal contractors.
The OFCCP's tiered review process will improve the agency's
interaction with federal contractors by tailoring the scope of compliance
reviews to focus on the more substantive problems. This will allow for greater
flexibility in determining the scope of individual reviews.
The OFCCP will upgrade its technology to allow for
electronic communication with federal contractors, transfer and evaluation of
data and implementation of a paperless compliance review.
Through regulatory reform OFCCP will reduce the paperwork
burden on federal contractors by revising the requirements for the Affirmative
Action Plan. The agency also will make changes to simplify paperwork
requirements for federal contractors, while improving the efficiency and
effectiveness of the program.
Technical assistance seminars will be conducted for federal
contractors, especially for first-time contractors unfamiliar with the
requirements of the affirmative action and equal employment opportunity clause
in their contract.
The OFCCP laws cover approximately 26 million workers or
nearly 22 percent of the total civilian workforce. Annually, the federal
government awards nearly $200 billion in prime contracts. The OFCCP conducts
approximately 3,400 systemic compliance reviews each year, including glass
ceiling reviews. Since 1994, OFCCP has recovered more than $150 million in
financial settlements, benefiting victims of discrimination.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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