June 2022: OFCCP Releases New Directive Setting Expectations of Contractors During Compliance Reviews

Update Applicable to:
All employers with private contractors

What happened?
On March 31, 2022, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued a new Directive 2022-02.  The stated purpose is to provide “transparency on OFCCP’s compliance evaluation policies and expectations for contractors.”

What are the details?
Per OFCCP, this new Directive:

• Updates agency policies regarding the scheduling of contractors for compliance evaluations, including enhancing the agency’s neutral scheduling procedures to reach a broader universe of federal contractors and eliminating delays in scheduling.
• Establishes contractors’ obligations regarding timely submission of Affirmative Action Programs (AAPs) and support data, supplemental information, and access to employees, applicants, and other witnesses.
• Increases contractor accountability through the Contractor Portal, by stating that when covered contractors use OFCCP’s Contractor Portal to annually certify compliance with their AAP obligations, contractors are certifying that they have developed and maintained complete AAPs in compliance with OFCCP’s requirements.

This new directive also explicitly rescinds:

1. DIR 2018-06, Contractor Recognition Program (Aug. 24, 2018);
2. DIR 2018-08, Transparency in OFCCP Compliance Activities (Sept. 19, 2018);
3. DIR 2020-02, Efficiency in Compliance Evaluations (Apr. 17, 2020); and
4. DIR 2021-02, Certainty in OFCCP Policies and Practices (Dec. 11, 2020).

While the OFCCP has removed these Directives from the OFCCP’s Directive website, they are available in archives.

This Directive went into effect on March 31, 2022.

For more information, please see the links below:

Directive 2022-02

Contractor Portal

Agency’s Directive Website

OFCCP Archives

U.S Department of Labor News Release

Article 1 – Article 2 – Article 3

What do employers need to do?
Employers should review the links provided above and make adjustments to their scheduling policies and ensure contractor AAPs are completed correctly.