Crowell & Moring’s “Fastest 5 Minutes” is a biweekly podcast that provides a brief summary of significant government contracts legal and regulatory developments that no government contracts lawyer or executive should be without. This latest edition is hosted by partners David Robbins and Peter Eyre and includes updates on Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces, the
After a U.S. district court issued a preliminary injunction enjoining implementation of the “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces” final rule (discussed here), OFPP issued a Memorandum for Chief Acquisition Officers on October 25 instructing federal agencies to refrain from implementing the enjoined portions of the final rule, and to “immediately” amend any solicitations containing
On Wednesday, September 7th, 2016 at 12 PM Eastern, join us for a webinar titled “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces” Final Rule and Guidance: What You Need to Know. During this 90-minute webinar, a team of Crowell & Moring government contracts and labor & employment attorneys will discuss how contractors bidding on
By now, government contractors are largely aware of the information gathering and reporting requirements of the Fair Pay & Safe Workplaces Proposed Rule (“Fair Pay”), but whether and how to package the information proactively for the government has received less attention. Contractors would also be well served to consider their messaging and outreach efforts in proposals and, if necessary, in meetings with Suspending and Debarring Officials (SDOs) before the Fair Pay final rule issues or shortly after its effective date.
Assuming the final Fair Pay rule to be issued later this Spring mirrors the proposed rule, it will require disclosure of a variety of adverse findings, including “administrative merits determination,” “arbitral award or decision,” or “civil judgment” decisions rendered against the contractor within the preceding three-year period for violations of 14 enumerated federal labor laws and “equivalent state laws.” Multiple disclosures are necessary before award and every six months during contract performance. Gathering and reporting this information is a Herculean task and has consumed significant legal department time in recent months. But legal departments should also consider how the government will use the information, and whether proactive outreach and messaging to government customers is also necessary to protect the company.
After the government receives Fair Pay disclosures, the contracting officer will request analysis from a new category of official – a labor compliance advisor – who will focus on whether the violations are serious, repeated, willful, or pervasive. The contracting officer can then decide whether to award a contract, exercise an option, terminate a contract, or refer the matter to the agency SDO.
There are three federal officials of note who will interact with a contractor’s history of labor violations: the contracting officer, the labor compliance advisor, and the SDO. Two of those officials – the contracting officer and the SDO – can materially, directly, and detrimentally impact the contractor. So contractors should be considering how to shape their communications and disclosures to address the needs of both of these officials.Continue Reading Preparing for Fair Pay & Safe Workplaces — Previewing Violation and Remediation Information with the Government
The FY 2016 Omnibus Appropriations bill, passed on December 18, 2015, did not appropriate funds to establish an Office of Labor Compliance within the Department of Labor in order to implement the “Fair Play and Safe Workplaces” Executive Order, as requested by the Obama Administration. By declining to appropriate the requested funds, Congress pumped the
On July 15, 2015, the Chairmen of the House committees of jurisdiction sent a letter to Labor Secretary Tom Perez and OFPP Administrator Anne Rung regarding the “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces” Proposed Rule and Guidance. Citing the myriad legal, procedural and substantive flaws in the EO and resulting Proposed Rule and Guidance (previously discussed
In response to several requests from industry to extend the a 60-day comment period for the proposed rulemaking (NPRM) and guidance implementing the “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order,” the FAR Council and the DoL have extended the comment period to August 11, 2015 (from the current date of July 27, 2015). As discussed
Please join us on Wednesday, June 10, 2015, from 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m., as Crowell & Moring presents the webinar, “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Proposed Rule and Guidance: What You Need to Know.”
On May 28, 2015, the Obama Administration published the highly-anticipated proposed FAR rule and proposed DOL guidance implementing
On May 28, 2015, the Obama Administration published the highly-anticipated Proposed Rule and Proposed Guidance implementing the “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces” Executive Order, (E.O.) which President Obama issued on July 31, 2014. The proposed rule adds a new subpart to the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) – subpart 22.20 “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces” – which “incorporate[s]” proposed guidance issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) titled “Guidance for Executive Order 13673, ‘Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces.’ ” (“Proposed Guidance”). These regulations will not take effect until the final rule and final guidance are issued, but the proposed rule and guidance trigger a 60-day period to comment on the proposed rule and guidance, and offer insight into the onerous compliance and reporting burdens that contractors and subcontractors will face under the Proposed Rule. Below is a summary of several key provisions.
Continue Reading Obama Administration Issues Proposed Rule and Guidance for Implementing “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces”