On September 19, 2013, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) filed a Notice of Intent with the Administrative Review Board (ARB), informing the Board that they would not appeal the decision in the case regarding hiring discrimination against “non-Asians” at VF Jeanswear Limited. The order of case closing, issued September 25, 2013, can be found at: http://www.oalj.dol.gov/PUBLIC/ARB/DECISIONS/ARB_DECISIONS/OFC/13_089.OFCP.PDF.
The OFCCP’s case against VF Jeanswear was based on alleged discrimination against non-Asian applicants. The contractor successfully fought the claim with the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) stating that, “The ‘non-Asian’ category upon which the Plaintiff has proceeded is neither a race nor an ethnic group, either by regulatory definition or as using in common parlance”. The ALJ’s August 3, 2013 decision can be found at: http://www.oalj.dol.gov/Decisions/ALJ/OFC/2011/OFCCP_-_ATLANTA_GA_v_VF_JEANSWEAR_LIMITED_2011OFC00006_%28AUG_05_2013%29_141447_CADEC_SD.PDF.
The five races and ethnicities defined in the regulations are Black, American Indian, Asian, Hispanic, and White. The decision not to appeal has a potential impact on other cases where the OFCCP is claiming discrimination against other aggregate groups of the five races and ethnicities defined in the regulations, such as discrimination against ‘minorities’ as a whole, as opposed to discrimination against one group individually.
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 ALJ ruling.