Insights

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Category: Immigration

USCIS Issues Temporary Rule Extending Certain EAD Expiration Dates for 540 Days

Some holders of Employment Authorization Documents (Form I-766) will receive automatic extensions under a temporary final rule published by the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on April 8, 2024. The automatic extensions apply to EAD holders who are awaiting approval of EAD renewals for which they filed on or after October 27, 2023, as...
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Category: State and Local Law

CWC Interstate: April 2024 Update

The Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC), our affiliated nonprofit membership association, presents its most recent Interstate memo to help its members stay on top of ever-evolving state and local workplace compliance developments. CWC’s latest update of employment-related state and local laws covers notable developments since February. Topics involving more than one state included paid leave and the posting of required...
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Category: AAP

OFCCP Opens 2024 Contractor Portal for Annual AAP Certifications, Deadline Is July 1

The Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has opened its online Affirmative Action Program Verification Interface Portal (“contractor portal”) through which covered federal contractors must certify their compliance with the agency’s AAP requirements. Certifications must be completed by July 1, 2024. CWC’s review of OFCCP’s contractor portal landing page, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), and User Guide reveals that the registration and certification...
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Category: Agency Enforcement

OSHA Finalizes Walkaround Rule Permitting Third Party Presence During Workplace Inspections

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a final rule that permits employees to authorize a third party—including a labor union representative—to represent them during an OSHA inspection if the OSHA compliance officer believes that the third party’s presence is reasonably necessary for an effective and thorough physical workplace safety inspection. The new rule,...
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Category: Comment Letter

CWC Files Comments on Proposed Federal Contractor Pay Transparency Regulations

The Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC), our affiliated nonprofit membership association, has filed comments with the White House Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) and the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council in response to the proposed rule on Pay Equity and Transparency in Federal Contracting. The proposal would require contractors to disclose salary and benefits in advertisements for jobs to be...
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Category: Affirmative Action and Diversity

Divided FCC Votes To Resume Collecting Race/Ethnicity Data From Broadcasters

The Democratic majority on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted recently to resume collecting race and ethnicity data from broadcasters, an information collection that the agency abandoned more than 20 years ago. Once the data is collected, the FCC intends to disclose it to the public in non-aggregated form as submitted by each covered broadcaster. Again on a 3 to...
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Category: Affirmative Action and Diversity

OMB Revises 1997 Federal Race/Ethnicity Reporting Standards, Adds New “MENA” Category

The standards that federal agencies have used for more than 25 years to collect race and ethnicity data are changing. The revised standards, published by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in the Federal Register March 29, 2024, add a new race and ethnicity category for individuals identifying as Middle Eastern or North African (MENA). They also require...
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Category: Discrimination and Harassment

Federal Court Rules DOC Minority Business Development Agency Discriminates Based on Race

A federal district court in Texas has permanently enjoined the U.S. Commerce Department’s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) from considering an applicant’s race or ethnicity when determining eligibility for the agency’s business assistance programs. In Nuziard v. Minority Business Development Agency, (N.D. Tex. March 5, 2024), a group of White owners of small businesses sued the MBDA after they were denied assistance...
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Category: Discrimination and Harassment

Fourth Circuit Affirms $3.4 Million Title VII Discrimination Award to White Male

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has affirmed a jury verdict in favor of a white male employee who claims he was fired in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Fourth Circuit found that there was sufficient evidence for the jury to conclude that the plaintiff’s White race and/or male sex...
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Category: Affirmative Action and Diversity

OFCCP Resets Annual Vets Hiring Benchmark at 5.2%, Down 0.2% From 2023

The Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has updated its annual Vets Hiring Benchmark to 5.2%. The annual benchmark represents the national percentage of veterans in the civilian labor force. Most federal contractors use it to measure whether their hiring of protected veterans complies with OFCCP’s affirmative action regulations under the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance...

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