On August 27, 2013, Vice President Joe Biden, while addressing The American Legion National Convention in Houston, TX, announced the revisions to the regulations implementing both the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) expects the final rules to be published in the Federal Register within the next two weeks. The rules will become effective 180 days from that date. The OFCCP web page on the VEVRAA regulations can be found at: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/vevraa.htm and the web page for Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act regulations can be found at: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/section503.htm. Both pages include links to the regulatory text.
The OFCCP website highlights changes to the VEVRAA regulations, including the rescission of 41 CFR Part 60-250, while noting that 41 CFR Part 60-300 is amended to include veterans only covered under Part 60-250. An important change is the inclusion of hiring benchmarks with two methods for establishing them. Other changes include data collection requirements, the requirement for inviting applicants to self-identify both pre-offer and post-offer, job listing requirements, clarification to records access by the OFCCP, and the use of specific language for incorporating the Equal Opportunity Clause.
The OFCCP website also highlights changes to the Section 503 regulations that include the establishment of a 7% utilization goal for qualified individuals with disabilities (IWDs) that is to be applied to each job group if the contractor has more than 100 employees, or to the entire workforce if the contractor has 100 or fewer employees. Other revisions include data collection requirements, the requirement for contractors to invite applicants to self-identify both pre-offer and post-offer using prescribed language, the use of specific language for incorporating the Equal Opportunity Clause, and the requirements for records access by the OFCCP. Finally, the revisions implement needed changes to the definition of “disability” due to the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA).
The OFCCP will be hosting two webinars for each rule, two in August and two in September. There are links for registering for the webinars on the OFCCP website pages noted above.
Please contact us by calling (732) 446-2529 or sending us an e-mail at glennbarlett@gbcs.net if you are interested in discussing the revisions to VEVRAA and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act.