This week the final U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council released regulations and guidance to implement Executive Order 13673, Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces, aka, “blacklisting.”

Under the rule, first announced by President Barack Obama as part of the executive order in July 2014, companies bidding for federal contracts worth more than $500,000 will have to disclose any violations of 14 federal labor and employment laws and their state equivalents within a three-year look-back period. The goal, according to the White House, is to curb contractors who don’t play by the rules and level the playing field for those who do abide by labor laws, to benefit from taxpayer dollars.

• The final guidance is available at: https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2016/08/25/2016-19678/guidance-fair-pay-and-safe-workplaces.
• The final regulations are available at: https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2016/08/25/2016-19676/federal-acquisition-regulation-fair-pay-and-safe-workplaces

As mentioned above, there are 14 labor and employment laws and executive orders affect contractors during the bidding process:

1. The Fair Labor Standards Act
2. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (including OSHA-approved State Plans equivalent to State Laws)
3. The Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act
4. The National Labor Relations Act
5. The Davis-Bacon Act
6. The Service Contract Act
7. Executive Order 11246 of Sept. 24, 1965 (Equal Employment Opportunity)
8. Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
9. The Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1972 and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974
10. The Family and Medical Leave Act
11. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
12. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
13. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
14. Executive Order 13658 of Feb. 12, 2014 (Establishing a Minimum Wage for Contractors)

While the order also covers equivalent state laws, with the exception of OSHA-approved state plans, equivalent state laws will not be covered in the current guidance and rule; a separate rulemaking will be needed to implement these. The regulations are set to be implemented on Oct. 25, 2018.