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What happens if the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) audits your recruitment process tomorrow? Do your job postings meet the OFCCP job posting requirements?
If you’re reading this, your answer is probably “no”.
OFCCP is more than just a regulatory box to check once for federal contractors. It’s an ongoing obligation. Missing EEO statements, failure to post job openings with the state Employment Service Delivery Systems (ESDS), or using biased job descriptions are common mistakes. They could result in suspensions, fines, or worse–the loss of your government contract.
OFCCP compliance is also not just about avoiding penalties. Compliant job postings can broaden your talent pool. And improve your employer brand.
If you want this and the added benefit of not inviting an audit, this blog post is here to help. By the end of this guide, you’ll have a clear roadmap to create job postings that meet the OFCCP job posting requirements and reflect your organization’s commitment to inclusion.
But before creating OCCP-compliant job postings, let’s understand the 3 federal laws that govern every government contractor.
Here’s what you need to know about OFCCP job posting requirements and laws
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) enforces 3 federal laws to ensure that employers with government contracts provide equal employment opportunities. So, these 3 regulations are:
- Executive Order 11246
- Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act
- Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA)
OFCCP Job Posting Requirements: Executive Order 11246 (EO11246)
Almost all federal contracts and subcontracts are covered under the EO11246, unless specifically exempted. If your organization also has a contract with the federal government that is less than $10,000 within a one-year timeframe, you could also be exempted from this Executive Order.
Apart from prohibiting federal contractors and subcontractors from discriminating in employment decisions, EO11246 also requires organizations that work with the government to take affirmative action to ensure that equal opportunity is provided in all aspects of their employment. So, affirmative action is a set of policies and practices designed to stop unlawful discrimination and remedy the effects of such discrimination.
Another goal of EO11246 is to prevent contractors and subcontractors from taking adverse actions against applicants and employees for asking about, discussing, or sharing information about their pay or the pay of their co‐workers.
OFCCP Job Posting Requirements: Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act
The section 503 rule focuses on preventing discrimination against individuals with disability. And like EO11256, it requires government contractors and subcontractors to take affirmative action in the hiring, retention, and promotion of people with disabilities.
Section 503 applies to all government contractors and subcontractors with contracts greater than $10,000. Some requirements of Section 503 that have to do with the Affirmative Action Plan also apply to government contractors that have 50 or more employees and a federal contract of $50,000 or more.
OFCCP Job Posting Requirements: Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA)
VEVRAA plays a significant role in promoting the employment and financial stability of protected war veterans. It was initially signed into law to protect the Vietnam war veterans, as its name suggests, but has now been expanded to cover all veterans.
VEVRAA requires federal contractors and subcontractors to take affirmative actions to hire, retain, and promote protected veterans. Protected veterans in this case are:
- Disabled veterans
- Recently separated veterans
- Active duty veterans
- Campaign badge veterans
- Armed Forces service medal veterans
So, what type of organization does VEVRAA apply to? It impacts employers with federal contracts or subcontracts worth $100,000 or more. So, if this applies to your organizations, you have the responsibility to do some outreach and recruitment and get veterans in your workforce.
Now, how do you ensure that your job postings comply with these laws? The following steps will help you:
Step 1: Create clear and inclusive job descriptions
OFCCP requires that job descriptions are free of bias and promote equal opportunity for all applicants.
If you’re not sure that your job descriptions are inclusive, here are some steps you can take to fix that:
- Use bias-free language: avoid gendered or exclusionary terms that might discourage qualified applicants. Tools like Ongig can help federal contractors identify biased phrases and remove them. Here’s a video that shows how Ongig can help you flag exclusionary phrases or terms in your job descriptions.
- Focus on basic qualifications: Clearly differentiate between essential and preferred qualifications. This ensures that candidates understand what is truly necessary for the role versus what would be a bonus. As recruiters, you should push back on unreasonable job qualifications.
Basic qualifications should be measurable, objective, and easily identifiable on a resume. For instance, don’t say “familiarity with programming languages.” That requirement is too vague. It begs the questions: which programming languages? How familiar should the candidates be?
A better way to frame that requirement is, “Proficiency in Python and Java (demonstrated by 2+ years of work experience).” This is measurable, objective, and can be confirmed by looking through candidates’ resumes. - Eliminate unnecessary barriers: Your job descriptions should also not contain physical or educational requirements unless they are job-related or legally defensible. For instance, if a job requires lifting heavy objects, consider accommodations and avoid making blanket statements that could discourage applicants with disabilities.
- Be specific and concise: vague or excessively detailed descriptions can confuse candidates. Write job duties and qualifications in clear, plain language that reflects the actual requirements of the role.
By focusing on these guidelines, you create job descriptions that meet OFCCP legal requirements while appealing to a wide and qualified talent pool.
Step 2: Include mandatory EEO statements
Including an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) statement in job postings is both a legal requirement and a best practice for federal contractors.
But many federal contractors don’t realize this until it (almost) becomes a problem, like in the case of George Fironov, CEO of Talmatic, a tech recruitment company specializing in providing engineers for both private and government sectors. He said:
“Early on, we underestimated the importance of including precise Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) statements in job descriptions. This omission flagged us during an internal audit. We resolved it by creating a standardized compliance checklist to ensure all postings met OFCCP guidelines, including proper job descriptions, salary transparency, and affirmative action language.”
You shouldn’t wait until you have the threat of an audit looming before you add EEO statements to your job descriptions. An effective EEO statement explicitly references all protected categories such as race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, and veteran status.
Here’s an example of an EEO statement from Atlassian:
“We believe that the unique contributions of all Atlassians create our success. To ensure that our products and culture continue to incorporate everyone’s perspectives and experience, we never discriminate based on race, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, or marital, veteran, or disability status.
All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.”
Your EEO statement should be placed prominently on all job postings.
Related: Watch this video to see how you can use Ongig to turn your job descriptions into job postings.
Step 3: Post jobs with State Employment Delivery Systems (ESDS)
According to the Department of Labor, when a contractor meets the minimum threshold for VEVRAA with a contract of $150,000, it must list all of its employment openings with the state workforce
agency job bank or the local American Job Center (known also as the employment service delivery system) where the openings occur.
Doing this is one type of affirmative action federal contractors take to recruit and hire qualified veterans. All positions are expected to be posted with ESDS except:
- Executive and senior management
- Positions filled from within an organization where no consideration is given to persons outside the organizations
- Open roles that the organization proposes to fill from regularly established “recall” lists
- Positions lasting three days or less.
Follow these best practices for ESDS postings:
- Standardize your process: develop a checklist or workflow to ensure all eligible positions are posted promptly. This is one measure Ryan Vaughn, CEO at SD Epoxy Floors used to stay compliant. He said:
“Early on, we missed properly listing all job openings with state job banks, which is an OFCCP requirement. We fixed this by creating a checklist for every job posting to confirm it met all guidelines, including timely state job bank submissions” - Maintain records: The Department of Labor requires that contractors maintain records of their job listings, or require that any third party provider of the listing service maintain the records. You should keep detailed logs of your job postings, including submission dates and confirmations, to demonstrate compliance during audits.
Step 4: Ensure accessibility of online application processes
Accessibility in your online application process is not just a compliance requirement, it is also a key aspect of creating an inclusive candidate experience.
Regulations require that contractors ensure that applicants with disabilities have equal opportunity to compete for jobs. Many online systems for job applications may not be fully accessible. For instance, an individual with visual disability might find it difficult to read the prints on the application website.
In situations like this, OFCCP requires contractors to be proactive. OFCCP doesn’t specifically spell out website technical standards but contractors should design their websites to ensure accessibility to the greatest number of potential applicants with disabilities.
Or the contractor should offer applicants alternate methods of applying for jobs and ensure that all methods are treated equally.
Step 5: Maintain comprehensive recording
OFCCP regulations require contractors to maintain detailed records of recruitment and hiring activities. According to Sonia Chapin, an expert on OFCCP audit support, these records are an important part of contractors agreement with OFCCP. She said:
“These records are a required part of the contractor’s AAP. OFCCP would like for contractors to use the data proactively, to drill down into the data to see what titles or steps in the process are driving adverse results, even if they are not under audit.”
Here are some best practices to help you maintain good records.
- Document Job Postings:
- Retain copies of job descriptions, including any updates.
- Record dates and locations where job postings were made, such as ESDS listings and other job boards. Jon Morgan, CEO of Smarter Ventures, claimed:
“It’s easy to assume that posting a job on the right platforms will automatically meet the requirements, but OFCCP regulations are very specific about where, how, and for how long you post openings.”
- Track Applicants:
- Maintain demographic data to monitor the diversity of your applicant pool.
- Use disposition codes to document the reasons candidates were advanced or not selected. Disposition codes are primarily used for OFCCP to track why candidates don’t work out.
- Audit-Ready Records:
- Ensure all records are complete, accurate, and easily retrievable.
- Store documents securely for the required retention period, typically three years.
- Leverage Technology:
- Use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to streamline data collection and storage.
- Generate reports that provide insights into hiring trends and compliance metrics.
Step 6: Regularly review and update job posting practices
Finally, you have to continuously review your job descriptions to ensure that you stay compliant. To stay ahead of OFCCP job posting requirements:
- Conduct internal audits: periodically review your job postings.
- Train your team: hire OFCCP program managers to educate hiring managers and HR staff on OFCCP regulations.
- Adapt to changes: stay informed about updates to OFCCP guidelines. Bookmark this website and visit it regularly to find the latest OFCCP news that might apply to your organization.
- Use technology for compliance: technology can simplify the process of maintaining compliance. Our job description software, for instance, offers:
– Automated templates: Ensure consistency and adherence to compliance standards.
– Bias-free language suggestions: Promote inclusivity.
– Integration with ATS: Streamline postings to ESDS and other platforms.
Use Recruitment Technology to Meet OFCCP Job Posting Requirements
Navigating OFCCP job posting requirements can feel overwhelming, but recruitment technology can make the process much easier. Tools like Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and compliance-specific software help federal contractor employers meet the mandatory job listing requirements set by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Streamlining the Hiring Process
One key benefit of using an ATS is its ability to manage open job requisitions efficiently. These systems automatically post jobs to the appropriate employment service delivery system, ensuring compliance with the basic posting requirements outlined in OFCCP’s regulations. So, this means every listing of employment openings is visible to job seekers, including protected veterans and other qualified individuals.
And, an ATS simplifies tracking and storing the details of internet applicants, a critical aspect of compliance reviews. Such tools maintain records like contact information, application timestamps, and the recruitment source for each potential candidate. So, this level of organization helps employers prepare for an OFCCP compliance evaluation or desk audit.
Promoting Equal Opportunity
Recruitment technology supports compliance with the equal opportunity clause of the VEVRAA regulation, the pay transparency nondiscrimination provision, and other federal laws. ATS platforms help contractors use features like career sites that emphasize their equal opportunity employer status. And, this also provides details about their affirmative action program and policy statement.
For example, DirectEmployers membership integrates with ATS systems to ensure mandatory job listings reach both local employment service delivery systems and major cities, maximizing visibility to job applicants. This functionality also ensures compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act and state laws while reducing the risk of undue hardship or mistakes in employment practices.
Ensuring Comprehensive Compliance
Another thing to note is that using recruitment tools isn’t just about meeting the OFCCP job posting requirements. It’s also about fostering fair hiring practices and promoting equal employment opportunity commission values. These systems can flag potential issues like job applicant’s prior salary history, ensuring your hiring aligns with the affirmative action requirements and other federal regulations.
Moreover, ATS systems make it easier to respond to a compliance review or an OFCCP audit checklist by providing additional information quickly and accurately. Therefore, by leveraging these tools, you can provide reasonable accommodation for internet applicants. You can also comply with specific requirements for educational institutions or areas of employment law.
The Role of Subject Matter Experts
While recruitment technology is invaluable, it’s equally important to work with subject matter experts to align your tools with OFCCP job posting requirements. Combining expertise with technology ensures you’re not just meeting the mandatory job listing requirement, but also building hiring practices that reflect the importance of OFCCP compliance.
So, with the right tools and guidance, employers can confidently meet the challenges of the OFCCP job posting requirements while creating a hiring process that promotes fairness and equity for all.
Use Ongig to make your job postings OFCCP-compliant
Creating OFCCP-compliant job postings is not just a legal obligation but an opportunity to foster a more inclusive workplace.
It can also be a complex and time-consuming process, but it doesn’t have to be. With Ongig’s job description software, you gain access to powerful tools that simplify compliance and enhance your recruitment efforts. Here’s how:
- Automated Templates: Create consistent, audit-ready job postings with templates tailored to OFCCP guidelines.
- Bias-Free Language Suggestions: Eliminate unintentional bias with AI-powered tools that identify and suggest inclusive language.
- Recordkeeping Tools: Keep track of job descriptions and posting details in one centralized location.
Partner with Ongig to create job postings that are compliant, inclusive, and impactful. Request a demo today and learn how we can help you stay compliant with the OFCCP job posting requirements.
