The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has issued a new directive to provide guidance on the agency’s approach to employment discrimination on the basis of gender identity or transgender status. In Directive 2014-02, OFCCP clarifies that it considers discrimination on the basis of gender identity or transgender status to be a form of sex discrimination prohibited by Executive Order 11246.
Each October, construction industry professionals in HR, training and workforce development gear up for the industry’s premier learning and networking event, Íæż½ã½ã’s Construction HR & Training Professionals Conference, and this year is no different. The 2014 event will be held Oct. 15-17 at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel in Phoenix, Ariz. For more information or to register, visit www.agc.org/CHRTPC.
"The Íæż½ã½ã Alternative," the first of its kind, nation-wide private insurance exchange to serve the commercial construction industry, begins offering quotes todayto firms belonging to Íæż½ã½ã of America, association officials announced. The private exchange, developed in collaboration with Willis North America, a unit of Willis Group Holdings, the global risk advisor, insurance and reinsurance broker, features comprehensive insurance coverage from Aetna, MetLife and Group Vision Service as part of its introductory suite of benefits.
On August 5, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued new Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) addressing how federal contractors should assess their employment relationships to distinguish “employees†from “independent contractors†or other non-employee workers. The FAQs describe what are commonly referred to as the “Darden†factors, derived from the 1992 Supreme Court decision in Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. v. Darden, and provide examples illustrating their application in determining which workers are employees.
On August 8, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that, if implemented, will require covered federal contractors and subcontractors to submit an annual Equal Pay Report on employee compensation.Â
On July 31, President Obama issued the latest, and most far-reaching, executive order in a series of presidential directives imposing new mandates on federal contractors.  The Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order (“EOâ€) purports to help federal agencies “identify and work with contractors with track records of compliance†with labor laws in order to “reduce execution delays and avoid distractions and complications that arise from contracting with contractors with track records of noncompliance.â€Â It imposes several new obligations on federal contractors and contracting agencies, increasing the burdens and risks for covered contractors. It does not cover federally-assisted contracts.
On July 24, 2014, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Revenue Procedure 2014â€37 to index the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) affordability percentages for 2015. As a result, large employers (according to the ACA’s definition) will need to ensure that an employee’s contribution for self-only coverage, if elected, will not exceed 9.56 percent of the employee’s income from that employer. This percentage increased from the 9.5 percent that was written into the original law and subject to change each year to reflect increases in inflation. Under the ACA’s employer mandate play or pay rules, large employers may be assessed penalties for failure to offer full-time employees minimum value coverage that is affordable.
Íæż½ã½ã of America has submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) asking the agency to clarify its proposed rule implementing Executive Order 13658 (EO), which establishes a minimum wage of $10.10 per hour for direct federal contractors and subcontractors. The new minimum wage impacts covered contracts entered into on or after January 1, 2015. Federally assisted contractors are not affected. The order also mandates that the Secretary of Labor determine a new minimum wage for federal contractors in 2016, and each year thereafter, based on the annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for urban wage and clerical workers.
On July 21, President Obama signed an executive order (EO) prohibiting federal and federally assisted contractors and their subcontractors from engaging in employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
On July 14, 2014, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOCâ€) issued new guidance on how the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (“PDAâ€) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADAâ€) apply to pregnant workers.