The National Industry Liaison Group (NILG) Board released an announcement to its members on March 18, 2020, followed by a related message the following day released from OFCCP via their subscription email list. Both messages made clear that OFCCP is prepared to be flexible in the coming months given the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on the Agency and contractors, however OFCCP will continue operations in order to pursue its important mission of ensuring equal employment opportunity. OFCCP ensured that they will adjust to be consistent with public health guidelines. In addition, OFCCP is exploring the use of video conferencing in lieu of onsite visits in order to move forward with Section 503 focused compliance reviews; as a reminder, these focused reviews require an onsite. Resources such as WebEx, Skype and phones will be utilized to conduct interviews to complete all types of evaluations.
Additionally, OFCCP advised NILG that contractors impacted by the virus should request an extension for audits; this includes both desk audit submissions and responses to a request for information. If an extension is not granted, contractors are encouraged to contact the Ombuds office at 202-693-1174. The OFCCP Help Desk is also available at 1-800-397-6251 (or (TTY) at 1-877-889-5627) and online. For current, open audits, OFCCP encouraged both contractors and complainants to reach out to their local point of contact at OFCCP for a status update.
Stay tuned for additional updates.
By Amanda Bowman, Associate Principal Consultant at DCI Consulting Group
