NASHVILLE, TN – A Nashville resort and conference center has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor in which the employer will pay $630,722, in back wages and interest to resolve allegations that they discriminated against 250 Black, Asian and female applicants for housekeeping positions during a two-year period.

A routine compliance investigation by the department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs alleged that – from Aug. 17, 2018 through Aug. 17, 2020 – Marriott Hotel Services Inc.’s Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center used hiring practices that violated Executive Order 11246. The order prohibits federal contractors from discriminating in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.

While neither admitting or denying the allegations, Gaylord Opryland entered into an early resolution conciliation agreement and agreed to take steps to ensure its selection process, personnel practices and hiring policies are free from discrimination, and that its recordkeeping methods meet legal requirements. The employer will also offer jobs to 49 affected applicants as positions become available.

“Federal contractors’ employment practices must not discriminate,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Southeast Regional Director Aida Collins in Atlanta. “Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center worked cooperatively with the U.S. Department of Labor to resolve our concerns. They also demonstrated their commitment to make appropriate changes to their hiring process and provide equal employment opportunities.”

Marriott Hotel Services Inc’s Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center provides conference, lodging and rental spaces to multiple federal agencies, including the Office of Acquisitions Management.

If you think you may be a class member affected, use OFCCP’s Class Member Locator to learn more about this and other settlements. Learn more about OFCCP, or call 800-397-6251.

OFCCP enforces Executive Order 11246, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974.

CHICAGO – The U.S. Department of Labor has entered into a conciliation agreement with Midwest Canvas Corp. to resolve preliminary findings of a compliance evaluation that alleged the Chicago manufacturer discriminated in hiring applicants for its laborer positions between 2018 and 2019. The company was a federal contractor that provided plastic sheeting to the U.S. Agency for International Aid.

A review by the department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs alleged that from March 30, 2018 through Sept. 30, 2019 the company discriminated against Black, Asian and white applicants for laborer positions. The agency found Midwest Canvas’ actions violated Executive Order 11246, which prohibits federal contractors from discriminating in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.

To resolve the allegations, Midwest Canvas agreed to pay $230,204 in back pay and interest to the affected applicants who applied for the laborer positions. In addition, the company will make employment offers to 41 identified class members. The company admits no liability and denies OFCCP’s allegations.

“The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs takes seriously the legal and contractual obligation of federal contractors to provide equal employment opportunities for all qualified job applicants regardless of race,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Regional Director Carmen Navarro in Chicago. “Working together with Midwest Canvas, OFCCP will ensure that the issues identified in this compliance evaluation are resolved and that the company puts into place procedures to ensure future compliance.”

Based in Chicago, the Midwest Canvas Corp. is a leading manufacturer of pool covers, tarps, plastic sheeting and related products. It operates manufacturing facilities in Illinois, New York, Texas, and Utah.

OFCCP launched the Class Member Locator to identify applicants or workers who may be entitled to monetary relief and/or consideration for job placement as a result of OFCCP’s compliance evaluations and complaint investigations. If you think you may be a class member who applied for jobs at Midwest Canvas during the investigative period, please use OFCCP’s Class Member Locator to learn more about this and other settlements.

Learn more about OFCCP.

CHICAGO – The U.S. Department of Labor has asked the Office of Administrative Law Judges to compel federal contractor Rosemount Inc. of Chanhassen, Minnesota, and its subsidiary, Rosemount Specialty Products LLC of Wenatchee, Washington, to provide documents and information necessary for the department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to complete a scheduled compliance review of the company’s equal employment opportunity practices.

If the companies fail to comply, the department’s filing seeks an order to cancel the companies’ current government contracts and debar them from obtaining future government contracts.

Rosemount Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Emerson Electric Co. in St. Louis and its subsidiary, Rosemount Specialty Products – which manufactures measuring and controlling devices – has contracts with the Department of Defense and the Defense Logistics Agency.

On July 2, 2021, OFCCP requested Rosemount provide required information on its Affirmative Action Programs and supporting data information in a scheduling letter. In late August 2021, Rosemount submitted the company’s policy and procedure statements about its equal opportunity practices but did not submit the supporting data requested.

Despite repeated requests the company failed to provide OFCCP with the missing data including employment activity such as applicants, hires, promotions and terminations by job group or job title as well as information on its affirmative action goals. On Nov. 18, 2021, the agency issued a Show Cause Notice to Rosemount, demanding it either submit the outstanding information and data or demonstrate why enforcement proceedings should not be initiated. To date, the company has not complied.

“Rosemount’s repeated failure to provide documentation necessary to complete a required compliance review is a clear violation of their legal obligations as a federal contractor,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Regional Director Carmen Navarro in Chicago. “If they continue to fail to provide the information, the Department of Labor has asked the court to terminate the company’s federal contracts. Compliance with the law is not optional. OFCCP will take all necessary steps to ensure federal contractors abide by equal opportunity protections.”

OFCCP enforces Executive Order 11246, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. Together, these laws prohibit employment discrimination.

Learn more about OFCCP.

Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, U.S. Department of Labor v. Rosemount Inc., Rosemount Specialty Products LLC

OFCCP Control No. R00304350

LANCASTER, PA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has entered into a conciliation agreement with Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories Environment LLC to resolve alleged hiring discrimination against Asian job applicants at the federal contractor’s Lancaster facility.

An OFCCP compliance review found that – from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2019 – Eurofins discriminated against 22 Asian applicants who were not selected for associate scientist positions. The agency determined that the company’s actions violated Executive Order 11246, which prohibits federal contractors from discriminating in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.

“Eurofins worked cooperatively with the department to resolve these matters and to prevent similar issues from happening again,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Mid-Atlantic Regional Director Samuel Maiden in Philadelphia. “We appreciate that Eurofins agreed to the conciliation agreement to remedy the issues quickly and will proactively take steps to comply with federal hiring and equal employment opportunity laws.”

Eurofins also agreed to extend five job opportunities to Asian applicants not selected for the associate scientist position, provide training to all company employees involved in hiring decisions and review and revise its recruitment processes to ensure they are free from discrimination.

View the conciliation agreement.

Headquartered in Luxembourg, Eurofins Scientific provides a range of testing and support services to the pharmaceutical, food, environmental and consumer product industries. It operates approximately 940 laboratories in 59 countries. The company offers waste characterization, water, soil, and surface testing services, and vapor, air, water petroleum, oil, and gas analyses at its Lancaster facility.

OFCCP enforces  Executive Order 11246, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. These laws require that federal contractors provide equal employment opportunity through affirmative action.

OFCCP launched the Class Member Locator to identify applicants or workers who may be entitled to monetary relief and/or consideration for job placement as a result of OFCCP’s compliance evaluations and complaint investigations. If you think you may be a class member who applied for or was interested in an associate scientist position at Eurofins Lancaster Laboratories Environment LLC during the investigative period, please visit the Class Member Locator. 

Learn more about OFCCP.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today launched an online portal to help contracting officers, contractors and subcontractors to provide required notices of federal construction contracts and subcontract awards.

Executive Order 11246, a legal authority enforced by the department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, requires contracting officers and contractors to submit a notice to OFCCP within 10 working days of the award of a federal or federally assisted construction contract or subcontract that exceeds $10,000.

The Notification of Construction Contract Award Portal provides users with a more efficient and secure way to submit required information about contract awards, including the contract’s effective date.

“By creating this portal, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs is making it easier for contracting officers and contractors to submit information about construction contract awards which, in turn, provides more timely and complete information on federal contracts,” explained Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Director Jenny R. Yang. “As the pace of federal investments in our nation’s infrastructure accelerates, we expect an increase in the number of contractors and projects under OFCCP’s jurisdiction. This tool will enable us to schedule and perform compliance reviews more efficiently and effectively.”  

The portal will be the primary source for entering, tracking and submitting contract award notifications for OFCCP review. The site is designed to reduce or eliminate the need to submit contract award notifications by mail or email.

Access the portal and learn more.

Learn more about OFCCP.

KANSAS CITY, MO – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has entered into a multi-establishment conciliation agreement with Cerner Corp. – a healthcare and information technology company – to resolve preliminary findings of a federal compliance evaluation that alleged the company discriminated in hiring Black and Asian applicants between 2015 to 2019.

After a routine compliance review OFCCP alleged that the employer systemically discriminated against qualified Black and Asian applicants who applied for positions to work at five facilities in Missouri and Kansas specifically at its Cerner Oaks Campus and Cerner Innovations Campus in Kansas City, Missouri; and at its Cerner Corp. and Cerner Continuous Campus North Tower in Kansas City, Kansas.

Cerner Corp. entered early resolution to resolve the allegations voluntarily, and agreed to pay $1,860,000 in back pay and interest to 1,870 applicants who sought employment as medical billing account/patient account specialists, system engineers, software interns and technical solution analysts.

In its compliance review, OFCCP found Cerner Corp.’s actions – from July 6, 2015, to June 30, 2019 – violated Executive Order 11246. The order prohibits federal contractors from discriminating in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.

“Working together, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and Cerner Corp. will ensure that the issues identified in this compliance evaluation are resolved and that Cerner puts into place procedures to ensure compliance with equal employment opportunity laws,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Regional Director Carmen Navarro in Chicago.

In addition to the distribution of back pay and interest under the agreement, the company will ensure that its hiring procedures are monitored and free from discrimination. The company does not admit liability and denies OFCCP’s allegations.

Cerner provides information technology solutions to the healthcare industry. The company has federal contracts with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.

OFCCP launched the Class Member Locator to identify applicants or workers who may be entitled to monetary relief and/or consideration for job placement as a result of OFCCP’s compliance evaluations and complaint investigations. If you think you may be a class member who applied for jobs at  Cerner during the investigative period, please use OFCCP’s Class Member Locator to learn more about this and other settlements.

Learn more about OFCCP.

SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Department of Labor has entered into a conciliation agreement with Esri-based in Redlands, California, to resolve preliminary findings of a federal compliance evaluation that allege the company paid 176 female employees less than their male counterparts in 2017.

The department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs alleged that from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2017, Esri – a digital mapping and analytics company – systemically discriminated against 143 female software development engineers and 33 female quality assurance engineers at its Redlands headquarters.

Esri entered into an Early Resolution Agreement voluntarily to resolve the allegations, and agreed to pay $2.3 million in back wages and interest to the affected employees. The company will also review and revise its overall compensation system, provide enhanced training to its managers to ensure future compliance, and conduct annual compensation analyses.   

“Federal contractors must ensure that their compensation policies and practices provide equal pay and do not lead to discrimination based on gender,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Director Jenny R. Yang. “Federal contractors must conduct annual pay equity audits and take proactive efforts to assess compensation systems and remedy unjustified pay gaps.”

Executive Order 11246 prohibits federal contractors and federally assisted construction contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment decisions based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.

OFCCP launched the Class Member Locator to identify applicants or workers who may be entitled to monetary relief and/or consideration for job placement as a result of OFCCP’s compliance evaluations and complaint investigations. If you think you may be eligible for back pay from this settlement, or may know someone who is, please visit the OFCCP Class Member Locator to learn more about this and other settlements.

Learn more about OFCCP.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission hosted an online discussion on June 28, 2022, on skills-based hiring to promote equal employment opportunity in the workplace.

The roundtable, “Skills Based Hiring: Removing Barriers and Paving Pathways to an Inclusive Workforce,” brought together leaders to explore how more employers are removing hiring barriers and retaining workers by recognizing and valuing workers’ skills regardless of where they were acquired – whether in a formal degree program, on the job, or through a worker’s own experience.

The third in a continuing series of Hiring Initiative to Reimagine Equity roundtables, the discussion sought to engage a broad array of stakeholders in pursuit of a common goal: to help address key hiring and recruiting challenges that prevent underrepresented communities from accessing good jobs.

“Many employers – the federal government included – are re-examining degree and hiring requirements to focus on an applicant’s abilities rather than where they learned them,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Director Jenny R. Yang. “In many cases, eliminating unnecessary educational requirements or narrow prior experience requirements for positions allows employers to select skilled workers from a diverse range of backgrounds. In many industries, business leaders are resetting their assumptions and expanding the pool of available talent.”

“Not every job requires a four-year degree, yet that default assumption limits many employers from finding qualified candidates,” said Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Chair Charlotte A. Burrows. “Focusing on skills-based hiring can open opportunities for workers who are often excluded from consideration, including job seekers from underserved communities.”

“We are delighted to support this collaborative HIRE initiative,” said Opportunity@Work CEO Byron Auguste. “Our extensive data analytics on skills and job mobility finds that over 70 million U.S. workers skilled through alternative routes such as community colleges, military service, partial college completion, workforce training programs, and on-the-job learning are undervalued in the job market.”

“OneTen is very pleased to join the EEOC and OFCCP today on this important topic to catalyze inclusive workplaces,” said OneTen CEO Maurice Jones. “Our country is currently leaving great talent on the sidelines. Scaling a skills first approach to our hiring and promoting will help us to be a great country for years to come.”

“At Bitwise Industries, developing inclusive technology starts with the assumption that our communities are full of untapped talent and potential,” said Bitwise Industries Vice President of External Affairs Laura Maristany. “Creating pathways for more representative tech talent starts with employers who value hands-on experience and build systems to screen people in. We do this by powering technology solutions across sectors with underestimated talent proving that human-driven approaches are not only the right thing to do but are also profitable.”

“SHRM is proud to be a resource to the EEOC and OFCCP as they identify best practices for reaching untapped talent pools and growing diversity in the workplace,” said the Society of Human Resource Management's Chief of Staff and Head of Government Affairs Emily M. Dickens. “HR professionals are leading the way in using skills-based hiring and alternative credentials in talent acquisition, and we will continue to partner with government and the business community to remove barriers for jobseekers.”

View a video recording of the event on the EEOC YouTube channel. 

COLUMBUS, NE – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has entered into a conciliation agreement with Becton, Dickinson and Company to resolve alleged hiring discrimination at the medical technology manufacturer’s three subsidiaries in Columbus and Holdrege.

In the agreement, the company will pay $499,349 in back pay and interest to 125 qualified female applicants. It will also take corrective action to ensure its hiring policies and procedures are free from discrimination, and provide training to all managers, supervisors and others who oversee hiring decisions.

“Our agreement with Becton, Dickinson and Company will ensure that individuals applying for positions in the medical technology industry will have equal access in hiring as the law requires,” said Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Regional Director Carmen Navarro in Chicago.

A routine OFCCP compliance evaluation found that Becton, Dickinson and Company discriminated against the female applicants when they applied for needle assembly, operator technician, and plastipak setup operator positions at the company’s Columbus West facility from June 11, 2016, to June 10, 2018, set-up operator positions at the Columbus East facility from April 15, 2018, to April 14, 2020, and for forming operator positions at the Holdrege facility from Feb. 7, 2018, to Feb. 6, 2020.

OFCCP determined that the company’s actions violated Executive Order 11246, which prohibits federal contractors from discriminating in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.

The Columbus and Holdrege facilities operate as subsidiaries of Becton, Dickinson and Company, based in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. The company has contracts with the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs

OFCCP launched the Class Member Locator to identify applicants or workers who may be entitled to monetary relief and/or consideration for job placement as a result of OFCCP’s compliance evaluations and complaint investigations. If you think you may be a class member who applied for jobs at  Becton, Dickinson and Company during the investigative period, please use OFCCP’s Class Member Locator to learn more about this and other settlements.

Learn more about OFCCP.

MILWAUKEE – A federal judge has sentenced the former president of the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 1295 – a dockworkers’ union known as the Milwaukee Grain Trimmers – to home confinement of 240 consecutive days, 2 years of probation, ordered to pay a $200 special assessment and $219,000 in restitution to the union and its employee benefit plan.

An investigation by the Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards and the Employee Benefits Security Administration found George J. Bindas gained authority of ILA Local 1295’s fund account at U.S. Bank in October 2012 and in 2013 became president of ILA Local 1295. From February 2013 to October 2013, he made 54 cash withdrawals from the account, draining its $70,000 balance, and then closed the account. Between May 2014 and January 2017, a participating employer sent 20 checks designated as benefit contributions, union dues, and incentive payments to Bindas. He negotiated the checks using a personal account, depositing a portion into his account and took the remaining balance as cash and cashier’s checks. Bindas also obtained at least $31,000 in cashier’s checks made payable to other union members.

In December 2021, Bindas agreed to plead guilty to one count of embezzlement from an employee benefit plan and one count of embezzlement of union funds from ILA Local 1295. His plea followed a July 2021 grand jury indictment on seven counts of embezzlement from an employee benefit plan and seven counts of embezzlement of union funds from ILA Local 1295 – violations of U.S. Code provisions 18 U.S.C. §664 and 29 U.S.C. §501, respectively.

Judge J.P. Stadtmueller of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin in Milwaukee sentenced Bindas on June 9, 2022.

“Unions play an important part in the modern American economy and actions like those of George Bindas unfairly erode trust in those unions and the important work they do,” said Office of Labor-Management Standards Regional Director Daniel LaFond in Milwaukee. “We are committed to ensuring union members’ dues and other benefits are properly accounted for and managed.”

“George Bindas’ egregious violations of the law breached the trust the members of the Milwaukee Grain Trimmers placed in him as their union’s president,” said the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration Regional Director Jeffrey Monhart in Chicago. “The U.S. Department of Labor is determined to investigate alleged misconduct and theft of employees’ hard-earned benefits, incentives and union dues. When violations are found, those responsible will be held accountable for the harm they have done.”

Up until early 2017, members of the former Local 1295 loaded grain ships for Rogers Terminal and Shipping, a subsidiary of the Cargill Corp. A regional master agreement and local contract addressed – among other things – benefit plan contributions, incentive payments, and mandatory union dues.

In 2016, the ILA revoked Local 1295’s charter and merged the union’s remnants into Local 815. Bindas’ failure to make per capita tax payments to the ILA and the Great Lakes District Council was a primary cause of the ILA’s merger. Once part of the council, Local 1295 was subject to the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959.

Established in 1975, the former Milwaukee Grain Trimmers Welfare Fund provided health benefits to union members.

U.S. vs. George Bindas

Case No. 21-CR-137