1B05 Contacting EEOC, VETS and Other Agencies

Simultaneous with the mailing of the Scheduling Letter, COs will seek information regarding the employment policies and practices of the contractor being scheduled from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Veterans Employment and Training Service (VETS), and other EEO and labor law enforcement agencies. Such information provides a better understanding of the contractor’s workforce and operations, and may indicate potential problem areas.

a. EEOC and State and Local Fair Employment Practices (FEP) Agencies. The CO sends an inquiry letter simultaneous with the mailing of the Scheduling Letter.21 The inquiry letter goes to the appropriate district office of the EEOC, and to the appropriate state and local FEP agencies. It requests information on discrimination complaints filed against the contractor and any other information that may be pertinent to assessing the contractor’s EEO posture. After 15 calendar days, COs must follow up by telephone with any agency that failed to respond or from which additional information is needed.

OFCCP has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with EEOC that includes provisions about information sharing, complaint referrals, coordination and consultation. COs are urged to become familiar with the provisions of this MOU.

b. Veterans Employment and Training Service, Employment Service Delivery System and DOL Enforcement Agencies. COs must contact the VETS regional office and local employment service delivery systems (ESDS) in writing to request any information that could be pertinent to the pending review, including information regarding the contractor’s compliance with the mandatory job listing requirements of the equal opportunity clause at 41 CFR 60-300.5(a), and complaints.22 When conducting compliance evaluations and complaint investigations, COs must query the VETS-4212 database online to verify that a federal contractor completed the annual reporting requirements for the appropriate reporting year. COs must then record the results of these inquiries in Part B.I of the SCER. Moreover, the information in this database, in combination with data provided under 41 CFR 60-300.44(k), may be useful when analyzing an employer’s recruitment and hiring practices. OFCCP provides a periodic report to VETS of contractors who have not filed the VETS-4212.23

Additionally, COs should check the DOL Enforcement Database at https://enforcedata.dol.gov/ for closed complaints and compliance evaluations of the contractor’s establishment, and may reach out to other DOL agencies such as the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) or the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for information on the compliance history of the establishment. For example, the WHD may have filed Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) violations related to the contractor that is the subject of a compliance evaluation.