PAUL WELLS OF THE BOEING COMPANY ELECTED CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF THE CENTER FOR CORPORATE EQUALITY

Washington, DC – Paul Wells, Compensation Consultant at The Boeing Company, was recently elected and named Chair of the Board of The Center for Corporate Equality, according to Patricia Schaeffer, Executive Director for the national nonprofit employer association based in Washington DC.

Wells is The Boeing Company’s corporate focal point on compensation audits conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) and the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA), as well as internal company audits related to pay and job classification. He also serves as the compensation focal point to assure coordination and alignment with the company’s Global Diversity and Employee Rights organization.

“As we continue to build The Center for Corporate Equality as a leader in advancing high performance bias-free organizations, Wells will bring forth a mastery of skills and leadership from his extensive experience in human resource management that will further grow our strategic direction,” said Schaeffer.

Wells was elected by The Center for Corporate Equality’s (CCE) 10-member Board of Directors in January and will serve a one-year term as Chair. Recognizing the association’s growing influence in affirmative action and equal employment compliance, Wells has been an ardent supporter of equity and fairness in the workplace.

“I am honored to serve as CCE’s Chair of the Board,” said Wells. “Since joining the Board in 2007, I have admired the outstanding leadership provided by our previous Board chair – Ken Coles, Corporate Head, EEO & Diversity, Bayer – who has had great vision and astute judgment in guiding our organization through its first years. I humbly accept the baton and look forward to working with a great team of corporate leaders who serve on this Board, CCE members, and with our expert staff.”

The Center for Corporate Equality is a national employer association whose corporate members are the senior corporate leaders from the compliance, compensation, and staffing functions of some of the world’s largest global corporations. CCE’s mission is to create workplaces free from bias and unlawful discrimination by harnessing the synergies between human resource functions and promoting affirmative action and equal employment regulatory compliance.

OFCCP Webinar- Online Application System

by Sul-Kee Kim, Consultant, DCI Consulting Group, Inc.

On January 8, 2009, OFCCP held a webinar to discuss its online application system directive and to provide additional tools and resources to assist Federal contractors in complying with the Directive. OFCCP Policy Branch Chief Naomi Levin and ODEP Policy Advisor Mario Damiani made the presentations. The presentation slides are on OFCCP’s Web site.

During the seminar, OFCCP indicated that it will make a conscious effort to ensure equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans. All compliance evaluations would include a review of a contractor’s online application system, and OFCCP will retain and investigate individual complaints involving a contractor’s online application system instead of referring them to EEOC.

ODEP recommended utilizing a technical assistance tool and useful resources in the Accessible Systems Racing League. A contractor can contact the Accessible Systems Racing League at earn@earnworks.com to receive a free diagnostic test of its career website or evaluate accessibility of its online application system on its own with the following 10 questions:

• Does your site display its equal employment opportunity policy statement?
• Does your site provide information on how individuals with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations?
• Can your site be navigated with a screen reader?
• Does your site time out after a period of inactivity? Does it allow users to request more time before the time out?
• Does your site avoid blinking, marquee or other auto-scrolling text which might trigger epileptic seizures?
• Does your site allow users to skip past repetitive navigation links?
• Does your site provide captioning for all video and audio content?
• Do all images on your site have accompanying text description?
• Can your site be accessed without using a mouse?
• Does your site provide fully usable online forms, PDF documents and PowerPoint materials, particularly to individuals who use screen readers?

E-VERIFY REMINDER FOR FEDERAL CONTRACTORS

by Keli P. Wilson, Consultant, DCI Consulting Group, Inc.

The final E-Verify rule was to become effective on January 15, 2009; however, due to recent events, the effective date was extended to February 20, 2009. This means the E-Verify clause will be included in contracts awarded after February 20, 2009. All prime federal contractors with a contract awarded in the amount of $100,000 or more are required to comply with the E-verify clause. Inclusion of the clause is also required in subcontracts over $3,000 for services or construction. However, contracts with performance terms of less than 120 days are excluded from this final rule. Additional exemptions include employees with security clearances and HSPD-12 credentials, contracts available off-the-shelf (COTS) or would be if not for minor modifications, and agricultural products shipped as bulk cargo that would otherwise have been categorized as COTS.

Federal contractors are required to verify authorization to work in the United States for all current employees directly performing work under the Federal contract and for all new hires throughout the term of the Federal contract. The contractor will record the verification identification number and result of the verification in the Form I-9 (or print out the result and keep the document with the I-9 form).

Federal contractors participating in the E-Verify program for the first time will have 30 calendar days to enroll, 90 calendar days from enrollment to begin using the system for existing employees, as well as 3 business days to verify new hires. In addition, after this initial period employers will have 30 calendar days to verify current employees newly assigned to contract work. The timeline differs slightly for contractors already using E-Verify prior to the final regulation. Federal contractors already enrolled will have 90 calendar days from the contract award date to verify employees and 3 business days from the hire date to verify all new hires.

In addition, contractors have the option of verifying all employees, even those employees not assigned to work directly on the Government contract. If the contractor chooses this option, the time period to verify all employees would be 180 days.

In some cases, employers only need to verify employees assigned to a federal contract and only those new hires assigned to work on the contract (not all new hires). These exceptions apply to the following: institutions of higher learning, state or local governments, federally recognized Indian tribes and sureties.

Lastly, it’s highly recommended to review current federal contracts to determine if and when the E-Verify clause is applicable to your contracts (e.g., modifications made to the contract). Following is a quote from the Department of Homeland Security FAQ website:

“Usage of E-Verify also applies to indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts modified after the January 15th, 2009 effective date of the rule on a bilateral basis in accordance with FAR 1.108(d)(3) to include the clause for future orders. The FAR rule provides that if the remaining period of performance extends at least six months after the final rule effective date, and the amount of work or number of orders expected under the remaining performance period is substantial, then the contract should be modified to include the clause.”

OBAMA SELECTS REP. HILDA SOLIS AS SECRETARY OF LABOR

On December 19, 2008, President-Elect Barack Obama named Rep. Hilda Solis as Secretary of Labor. Speaking at a press conference that named her and others to open cabinet positions, Solis vowed to strengthen unions and enforce existing laws and regulations, particularly with respect to wage and hour, overtime, and pay discrimination. In November Solis was elected to her fifth term in Congress representing California's 32nd Congressional District, which includes portions of the Los Angeles area, including East Los Angeles. Prior to her election to Congress, Solis served in the California State Assembly from 1992 to 1994. Solis made history by becoming the first Latina elected to the California State Senate in 1994, where she chaired the powerful Senate Industrial Relations Committee. Solis would be the third Latino member of Obama’s Cabinet, which has generated high praise from the Hispanic community. She is the child of immigrant parents and her upbringing shaped her as a strong advocate for workers’ rights. Her father was a Mexican immigrant who later became a Teamsters union steward. Her mother was born in Nicaragua and worked on an assembly line in the U.S. While a state legislator and Congresswoman, Solis wrote measures to help migrant workers, combat domestic violence, and limit pesticides. Solis graduated from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and earned a Master of Public Administration from the University of Southern California. She worked in the Carter White House Office of Hispanic Affairs and was later appointed as a management analyst with the Office of Management and Budget in the Civil Rights Division.

LA WEIGHT LOSS CENTER TO PAY $20 MILLION TO SETTLE SEX BIAS LAWSUIT

On December 2, 2008, the EEOC announced that it had resolved its pattern or practice sex discrimination lawsuit against LA Weight Loss Centers, Inc. (renamed Pure Weight Loss, Inc. in early 2007) for $20 million and other relief. EEOC alleged the company had a nationwide policy of not hiring qualified males into the positions of counselor/sales, medical assistants, assistant managers, center managers, area supervisors, trainers, and other field positions. EEOC also alleged that a former area trainer was disciplined and fired in retaliation for complaining about the company’s policy of not hiring men and for interviewing male candidates. In addition to the monetary relief, the settlement requires the company to use an electronic applicant tracking system for each person hired and for any person who submits applications, and to provide specific information on applicants by sex and other categories defined by EEOC.

FRED MEYER STORES TO PAY $485K TO SETTLE HARASSMENT LAWSUIT

On December 11, 2008, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced that Portland-based Fred Meyer Stores will pay $485,000 to three female victims of sexual harassment and retaliation to settle a lawsuit brought by the EEOC. The EEOC alleged the harassment occurred during 2004 through 2005 at the company’s store in Oregon City, Oregon and involved illegal conduct by the store’s director and operations manager. The alleged conduct consisted of repeatedly subjecting females to graphic sexual discussions, unwanted touching, and requests for sexual favors. The lawsuit also alleged the store’s human resources manager witnessed the harassing conduct several times, but did not act to stop it. When the female employees complained about the harassment, the EEOC reported they were fired in retaliation.

EEOC AND CRACKER BARREL SIGN UNIVERSAL AGREEMENT TO MEDIATE

On December 18, 2008, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced the signing of a Universal Agreement to Mediate (UAM) with Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. to informally resolve workplace disputes through Alternative Dispute Resolution prior to an EEOC investigation or potential litigation. The UAM applies to 56 Cracker Barrel establishments throughout Florida.

EEOC HOLDS MEETING ON EMPLOYERS’ USE OF CRIMINAL RECORDS IN EMPLOYMENT DECISIONS

On November 20, 2008, the EEOC held a meeting regarding views on employment discrimination faced by individuals with arrest and conviction records and how applicants’ criminal records are used in making employment decisions. Four panels discussed the barriers experienced by people with criminal records, stakeholder perspectives and litigation issues, new research developments and employer perspectives. Statements made by the panelists are available here.

BILL INTRODUCED TO CAP EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION FOR TARP-AIDED FIRMS

On November 19, 2008, a bill entitled “Stop the Greed on Wall Street Act” (S. 3693) was introduced in the Senate. The bill would cap executive compensation for employees of companies receiving funds from the $700 billion Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP).

HHS ISSUES FINAL ‘CONSCIENCE’ RULE

On December 19, 2008, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a final rule in the Federal Register that the agency said is intended to increase awareness of and compliance with federal “conscience” laws prohibiting employment discrimination against health care workers who have religious or moral objections to participating in certain health care services such as abortion. The rule is effective January 20, 2009. Reed Russell, EEOC legal counsel and two Democratic EEOC commissioners (Stuart Ishimaru and Christine Griffin) submitted comments during the rulemaking stage in opposition to the proposed rule. On November 20, 2008, a bill entitled “Protecting Patients and Health Care Act” (S.20) was introduced in the Senate to prohibit HHS from finalizing, enforcing, or implementing this rule.

BUSINESS COALITION FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST FEDERAL CONTRACTOR E-VERIFY MANDATE

On December 23, 2008, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced that it had filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland challenging the legality of an executive order and related federal procurement law that requires federal contractors to use E-Verify (Chamber of Commerce of the United States of Am. v. Chertoff, D. Md., No. 8:08-cv-03444-AW, filed 12/23/2008). Joining the U.S. Chamber as co-plaintiffs in the lawsuit are the Associated Builders and Contractors, the Society for Human Resources Management, the American Council on International Personnel, and the HR Policy Association.

FINAL DOL RULES GIVES PRIORITY TO VETS AND SOME SPOUSES FOR DOL SERVICES

On December 19, 2008, a final rule was published in the Federal Register giving veterans of the U.S. armed services and spouses of some veterans’ entitlement to receive priority for DOL employment, training and placement services within job training programs. The final rule is effective on January 19, 2009.