Affirmative Action - What is an "Applicant"? and OFCCP's Increased Involvement

Changes in OFCCP audit practices produced record financial recoveries – over $51.5 million – in 2006. The

number of audits also increased by a whopping 45%. This overview will help you:

1. Gain insight into OFCCP’s increased enforcement powers

2. Understand how the audit process is changing and where the focus is

3. Assess your organization’s potential and readiness for audit

4. Understand why over $51.5 million was paid out and where the dollars went

We will focus most of our time on understanding and discussion of OFCCP’s “Internet Applicant” regulation,

including:

1. What the regulation means by –

(a) Applicant “expression of interest” in employment;
(b) Employer “considers” applicant for employment;
(c) Employer has a “particular position” available;
(d) Applicant possesses “basic qualifications” and
(e) Assessing “noncomparative” qualifications of job seekers

2. Record-keeping and reporting requirements:

(a) What to keep and for how long;
(b) Obtaining race, gender and ethnicity information on applicants; and
(c) Selecting which applicant records to use in calculating adverse impact

3. Limiting an applicant pool to reduce liability:

(a) Best practices;
(b) Defensible options for removing individuals from the applicant pool; and
(c) Data management techniques