Following the completed OMB review of OFCCP’s Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) for a new Compensation Data Collection Tool, OFCCP will issue its ANPRM for the tool in the August 10, 2011 edition of the Federal Register. The agency notes that possible uses for the collected compensation data include:
- Generating insight into potential problems of compensation discrimination at the establishment level, that warrant further review or evaluation by OFCCP or contractor self-audit, and;
- To conduct analyses at the establishment level, as well as to identify and analyze industry trends, Federal contractors’ compensation practices, and potential equal employment-related issues.
The agency is seeking comments specifically addressing questions about the design and implementation of the new tool. Among the more interesting queries included in the ANPRM, are questions surrounding the following:
- Factors related to potential compensation discrimination (e.g., starting salary, pay raises, bonuses, etc.);
- Categories by which data should be collected (e.g., EEO-1 categories, AAP job groups, Standard Occupational Classification Codes, O*NET Occupational Classification Codes, etc.);
- Elements of compensation that should be collected (e.g., total W-2 earnings, base salary, holiday pay, shift differential, etc.);
- Types of trend analyses that would be appropriate to conduct on an industry-wide basis;
- Categories by which data could be collected for the purpose of nationwide multi-establishment reviews across contractor establishments;
- Design that would allow contractors to conduct self-assessments of their compensation decisions;
- Strengths and weaknesses of the 2000 EO Survey (a copy will be made available at www.regulations.gov);
- Factors to consider for requiring electronic data submission;
- Benefits and drawbacks for the possibility of requiring businesses that are bidding on future Federal contracts, to submit compensation data as part of the RFP process, which may be used for both trend analyses, as well as targeting contractors for post-award compliance reviews;
- Factors related to expanding the Compensation Data Collection Tool to include construction contractors, and;
- Potential impact on small businesses and possible alternatives strategies for implementing the tool.
Public comments on the ANPRM must be submitted by October 11, 2011.