OFCCP Compliance and Disability

Transcription

1 OFCCP Compliance and Disability Sheridan Walker CEO, HirePotential Jim Kuthy, PhD Principal Consultant, Biddle Consulting Group, Inc. Visit BCGi Online If you enjoy this webinar, Don t forget to check out our other training opportunities through the BCGi website. BCGi Standard Membership (free) Online community Monthly webinars on EEO compliance topics EEO Insight Journal (e-copy) BCGi Platinum (paid) Membership ($299/year) Fully interactive online community Includes validation/compensation analysis books EEO Tools including those needed to conduct AI analyses EEO Insight Journal (e-copy and hardcopy) Members only webinars and training and much more HRCI Credit BCGi is an HRCI Preferred Provider CE Credits are available for attending this webinar Only those who remain with us for at least 80% of the webinar will be eligible to receive the HRCI training completion form for CE submission 1

2 About Our Sponsor: BCG Assisted hundreds of clients with cases involving Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) / Affirmative Action (AA) (both plaintiff and defense) Compensation Analyses / Test Development and Validation Published: Adverse Impact and Test Validation, 2 nd Ed., as a practical guide for HR professionals Editor & Publisher: EEO Insight an industry e-journal Creator and publisher of a variety of productivity Software/Web Tools: OPAC (Administrative Skills Testing) CritiCall (9-1-1 Dispatcher Testing) AutoAAP (Affirmative Action Software and Services) C 4 (Contact Center Employee Testing) Encounter (Video Situational Judgment Test) AutoGOJA (Automated Guidelines Oriented Job Analysis ) COMPare: Compensation Analysis in Excel 4 Objective Building awareness of current OFCCP directives. Understanding your obligations as an employer related to recruiting, hiring and accommodating people with disabilities. Understanding requirements and where your organization stands relative to compliance. Determining the risk associated with your company's current OFCCP compliance status and identifying next steps. 5 Training Topics What is the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Program (OFCCP)? What about Section 503, EEO, ADAAA and Section 508? How the ADA expansion changes the definition of disability. Why should you care? What are the state and federal government priorities? How to manage risk while using common sense and good business practices. Build a sustainable compliance plan. Identify resources to assist with compliance. 6 2

3 Who is HirePotential, Inc.? Disability expertise with 25 years experience. Our Focus: Disability Compliance Accommodation/assistive technology outsourcing Training recruiters, managers, coworkers Website, apps and PDF accessibility Outsourced recruiting/placement Tax Credit administration OFCCP 8 Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs OFCCP (Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs) is responsible for ensuring that employers doing business with the Federal government comply with the laws and regulations requiring nondiscrimination and affirmative action in employment. 9 3

4 Affirmative Action Affirmative Action must be taken by covered employers to recruit and advance qualified minorities, women, persons with disabilities, and covered veterans. Affirmative actions include training programs, outreach efforts, and other positive steps. These procedures should be incorporated into the company s written personnel policies. Employers with written affirmative action programs must implement them, keep them on file and update them annually. Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, as amended Any contract in the amount of $25,000 or more entered into by any department or agency for the procurement of personal property and non-personal services (including construction) for the United States, shall contain a provision requiring that the party contracting with the United States shall take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment qualified special disabled veterans, veterans of the Vietnam era and any other veterans who served on active duty during a war or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized. Section 503 Any contract in excess of $10,000 entered into by any Federal department or agency for the procurement of personal property and non-personal services (including construction) for the United States shall contain a provision requiring that the party contracting with the United States shall take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment qualified individuals with disabilities. 4

5 EEO EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) enforces the provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of Title VII forbids discrimination in the workplace based on race, age, disability, religion, sex, or national origin. Title VII covers all phases and aspects of employment, including but not necessarily restricted to hiring, termination of employment, layoffs, promotions, wages, on-the-job training and disciplinary action. Americans with Disabilities Act ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) prohibits discrimination and ensures equal opportunity for persons with disabilities in employment, State and local government services, public accommodations, commercial facilities, and transportation. ADAAA- Amendment Act: Clarification/Expansion of definition of disability. Coming soon: Website Accessibility now expands under the ADA. Section 508 These standards define the types of technology covered and set forth provisions that establish a minimum level of accessibility. The standards cover the full range of electronic and information technologies (Subpart A). The standards provide criteria specific to various types of technologies, including (Subpart B): o software applications and operating systems o web-based information or applications o telecommunication products o video and multimedia products o self contained, closed products (e.g., information kiosks, calculators, and fax machines) o desktop and portable computers 5

6 High-Level/Web Accessibility Standards W3C Priority 1, Priority 2 and Priority 3 Guidelines Accessibility Guidelines put together by the World-Wide Consortium standards group. Most countries outside of the US use the W3C rules as their Benchmark for Accessibility legislation. ( UK etc) Rules are broken into 3 categories: Priority 1, A is a must-have for web sites (Section 508) Priority 2, AA are best-practices and Priority 3, AAA are considered best-case Most companies look to be WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) A, AA, AAA - P1, A and P2, AA compliant for International web sites (non-us) Section 508 Section-508 Guidelines US Accessibility Standards as defined in the 1998 Rehabilitation Act. These guidelines are a sub-set of the W3C Rules. All Federal Agencies must have Section-508 Compliant web sites, as must anyone the Federal Government uses as a supplier/vendor. The burden is on the government to purchase the most accessible technology/ services ADA Compliance: Does it apply to the web? 1990-These regulations will be published in the Federal Register. Does not specifically mention world wide web, but has been used for legal position within accessibility lawsuits Final regulations revising the Department s ADA regulations, including its ADA Standards for Accessible Design OFCCP Enforcement Enforcement Environment Audit case management sophistication has increased significantly via case tracking, statistical tools, and discrimination indicators. Effectively 50% of survey respondents indicated they did not have a documented process in place for accommodations (e.g., requested or needed by a candidate or employee.) Employer risk and liability have changed significantly and are expected to continue to increase. 6

7 Overview OFCCP Increased enforcement Priority is Disability and Veterans. OFCCP New Directive July 10, 2008 Under Section 503, Vietnam Era Veterans, ADA If an on-line applicant tracking system (ATS) is your primary method for accepting applications for employment, the ATS needs to be accessible, or you must provide an accommodationyou must ensure EEO. Effective immediately all compliance evaluations will include a review of the ATS. The term on line system shall include all electronic or web based systems that are used in all personnel activities. 7

8 ADAAA Sept. 25, 2008 & Effective Jan. 1, 2009 Definition of disability vastly expanded Major bodily function, with or without the perception that the impairment limits a major life activity. Definition has more clarity. Majority of the ADA is still the same. Companies will need to show they have processes to make individual assessments of employees qualifications with or without accommodations. Employers will be put to the test to evaluate employees one by one. 21 st Century Telecom, Video Accessibility Act- October 8, 2010 The act outlines several steps to ensure that persons with vision and hearing impairments have full access to the video, voice, text, and other capabilities of smartphones, digital television, and internet-based video programming. Website Accessibility for Public Websites TBD DOJ final regulations revising (July 2010) the Department s ADA regulations, including its ADA Standards for Accessible Design. Title II and Title III. What does this mean? 1. Change in Recruiting 2. Public Website Access Business, state, and local government in the United States will be required to meet accessibility standards just as much as they are required to put a ramp to their front door. It also means that businesses will be subject to DOJ lawsuits, monetary damages, etc. Already a state law in California (UNRUE) 8

9 Hiring Requirements April 26, 2011 Veterans Establish hiring benchmarks for veterans, expressed as a percentage of total hires which the contractor seeks to hire over the upcoming 12 months. December 9, People with disabilities 7% hiring goal for individuals with disabilities which would be used to measure a federal contractor's progress toward equal employment opportunity of individuals with disabilities and to assess where barriers to equal employment opportunity. OFCCP making announce April 2013 still waiting 25 OFCCP Focus 26 OFCCP Focus Applicant Tracking System Accessibility: Technology Accommodations: Individual Accommodation Process Pre-testing Reporting Where and who Outreach/recruiting 9

10 Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) Software to manage recruiting electronically View job openings Apply on line Reporting Etc. The Directive is about equal access not reporting Accommodations Alternative to access your open positions Manual process Systemic risk On line forms Pre-testing Reporting What do you do now? Recruiting: Section 503- Accessibility vs. Accommodation Automated Process Streamline Applicant Flow Accessibility Accommodation Website: Home page to ATS Statement Include Fax, , Phone, TTY Train Staff Done resume submit real time, reporting complete Assist Applicant Start to finish Available 24/7 Input reporting Manual Process Labor Intensive Systemic issues?? 30 10

11 Outreach Your company and recruiters must develop relationships and be prepared to share details of your outreach: who, what, where. Job boards alone, will not pass! Resources DVR, NFP, Vet Resources College & university disability services Advocacy organizations & service providers Direct access to job seekers with disabilities HirePotential, Inc. -Training & education (on-site and web) -Accommodations & website accessibility -Implementation Why it Matters 33 11

12 Why? Increase employment for People and Veterans with Disabilities. Equal Access and Opportunity for All. In July 2010, only 21.5% of working age PWD in U.S. participated in the labor force. By comparison, 70.6% of the U.S. working age population with no disability participated in the labor force. That s a huge discrepancy! Extension of the ADA-ADAAA. Increased focus by OFCCP and EEO on disability. Reasons Aging workforce. Growing population of people with disabilities. Growing number of service disabled veterans. Increased compliance focus. More businesses focusing on customers with disabilities. Business Benefits Government Regulations- OFCCP (EEO, AA, ADA, Sections 508 and 503, Vietnam Era Veteran Act). Universal Access Human Capital Management. Increase your market share. Increase revenue $175 Billion Dollar discretionary income controlled by consumers with disabilities ( US Census Data, reported by Wall Street Journal article titled: People with Disabilities are next Consumer Niche ) Decrease Liability Exposure. Retention of Highly Skilled Employees -Aging workforce. Expand Reach to Qualified Talent. Execution of Corporate Initiatives (Diversity, Global etc.) Social Responsibility. 12

13 Managing Risk Post an accommodation statement on your home & career pages. Have an accommodation process Training Centralized budget Know the basic assistive technologies. Assess your website for accessibility Keep report in a file for your records. Have a plan on next steps. Get a budget. Outreach Have a specific plan on who, what and where. Report the activity. Know your resources- names, locations, etc. Summary: Building a Sustainable Compliance Plan Accommodation statements on your website. Reasonable accommodation process: Train your people. Have a basic knowledge of accommodations. Outsource Accessibility assessment of your website ATS flow. Plan and budget to make your website accessible: Include a repeatable process (self monitor, 3rd party) Develop a recruitment outreach recruiting plan: Post all your jobs on GettingHired.com. Connect with Service Providers and build relationships. Host open house/job fair and include people with disabilities. Develop a reporting strategy. Questions to ask Yourself? Is our OTS accessible? (Home page to submit) Do we have a proactive accommodation process? What are we doing in outreach/recruiting? Have we trained your recruiters? hiring managers? Do we actively recruit and hire? Is this a local or national recruiting strategy? Do you have an Disability ERG? Are we documenting and reporting this information? Do you do testing? Is it accessible? What is our retention? How many are on STD/LTD? What is in your AAP? Have we implement this plan well? What are our gaps? Can we outsource areas where we have gaps? 39 13

14 Thank You For more information: Sheridan Walker at x 4 or swalker@hirepotential.com 40 14