US Labor Department Pay Equity and Workplace Flexibility Initiatives Announced
On July 20, 2010, the US Labor Department announced several initiatives designed to end wage discrimination while improving pay equity and work/life balance. The focus is on closing the gender pay gap and increasing workplace flexibility for America's families. According to the group, the effort to help workers balance their responsibilities at work with those in the home will be key to long-term economic success.
Through a collaborative effort among the Labor Department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), the Department of Justice, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the administration will ensure strategic enforcement of pay discrimination cases. What this means for contractors is the OFCCP is authorized to hire 200 additional enforcement staff and will publish a request for comments on the Equal Opportunity (EO) Survey in early 2011.
The EO Survey made its debut in the contractor community in 1999 and was codified into the regulations in 2000. The form asked contractor officials to certify there was an affirmative action plan in place at the location. It also asked to report on summary personnel activity and total lowest, and highest, compensation and tenure by EEO category or job group. Additionally, the survey only included full time employees and defined an applicant much more broadly than the current OFCCP “Internet Applicant” definition. Studies the agency requested determined the survey was not able to accurately predict discrimination at contractor sites, and its use was discontinued in 2006.
This notice allows contractors time to dust off the old survey and begin to craft recommendations for improvement. Berkshire will continue to monitor this initiative and will submit comments to the agency. We are currently soliciting comments from our clients to aid in crafting a response to the agency, please send any input to input@berkshireassociates.com.
As part of the larger initiative, the Labor Department's Women's Bureau will launch new public education efforts including an Equal Pay Checklist, a revamped Equal Pay Employer Self-Audit tool, and an Equal Pay Research Summit. The Wage and Hour Division will conduct a new Family and Medical Leave Act survey to provide insight into how families use leave. Finally, the Women's Bureau will sponsor a supplement to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' American Time Use Survey to gather more information on parental leave, child care, and family leave insurance program usage and will host a series of "National Dialogue on Workplace Flexibility" forums across the country. Additional information on the White House Initiative is available here:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/strongmiddleclass/.
For more information on the EO Survey, or wage discrimination regulations, please contact Berkshire Associates at 800.882.8904 or email bai@berkshireassociates.com.