Feature: OFCCP Compliance Evaluations Are Cranking Up

Feature: OFCCP Compliance Evaluations Are Cranking Up

Feature: OFCCP Compliance Evaluations Are Cranking Up

As we all know, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued its Final Rule for the definition of an online employment candidate last year. Since then, the agency’s compliance evaluations of employers have dramatically increased. According to data posted on the OFCCP site and/or provided to the public:

A record $51.5 million in assessments was recovered from government contractors in FY2006, thanks to a 45% increase in evaluations.

Staffing levels at the agency have grown by 400% in order to prepare for a more rapid pace of evaluations in FY2007 and beyond.

At least 2,000 companies have been sent letters notifying them that they are eligible for an OFCCP compliance evaluation in the next year.

Why does this activity affect you?

First, whether your site’s customers are government contractors or companies that work for government contractors, the new OFCCP definition places an increased burden on your site for both customer support and data storage. When employers search your resume database, you must be able to store their search strings and results for two years and you may have to give them a way to collect demographic data from candidates (e.g., gender, ethnicity, age), if you want to stay competitive with other sites in the industry.

Second, the perception of increased Federal scrutiny of employers’ procedures for sourcing candidates online can cause employers to cut back on or even discontinue using your resume database services. Although there is no definitive study confirming it, there is no lack of anecdotal evidence indicating that this reduction in one of our industry’s most important streams of revenue is already happening.

What should you do?

First, educate your customers:

The Federal requirement to store applicant resumes and collect individual demographic data has existed for some time. It’s not new.

The data collection and storage requirement is much more onerous offline than on. In the real world, a government contractor or an enterprise that works for a government contractor must store the resume of every candidate that applies the old fashioned way: in person, by mail or by fax. In contrast, when an employer searches an external resume database on the Internet, it need keep the resume of only those candidates who are qualified.

Second, educate the government:

Provide the OFCCP with feedback on your customers’ understanding of and reaction to its Final Rule. The agency needs to know whether its requirements are actually improving equal employment opportunity and affirmative action and if they’re having unintended and potentially counterproductive consequences.

Make sure the OFCCP is also aware of the impact the Final Rule is having on your business. There are different ways to accomplish the agency’s mission, so it need not adopt policies and strategies that are harmful to your business. As a government entity, however, it is not as familiar with the private sector as you are and may not be aware of the impact of its actions & unless you tell them.

How can you accomplish these educational tasks?

Well, you can certinaly try it on your own. But I believe the power of collective action is your best bet. Therefore, I suggest that you join the International Association of Employment Web Sites (IAEWS). It’s your trade organization and the only group–other than your own team–that works specifically for your success.

The IAEWS Working Group on the OFCCP is meeting directly with the agency to keep the Association’s Members informed of developments at the agency, and no less important, to keep the agency informed about the real world impact of its actions. There are other benefits to joining the IAEWS, but this dialogue is one that is both timely and critically important to your enterprise.

Thanks for reading,

Peter

P.S. Remember what you learned in kindergarten: It’s nice to share. Don’t keep the WEDDLE’s Job Board Newsletter to yourself. If you like our publication, please tell your friends and colleagues about it. They’sll appreciate your thinking of them. And, we will too!

News You Can Use

We at WEDDLE’s are pleased to offer the following resources for reaching potential customers among recruiters and HR professionals:

Sponsorship advertising in WEDDLE’s Newsletter for Recruiters & HR Professionals. During the first and third week of every month, WEDDLE’s delivers one of the most popular publications in the online employment industry. It’s Peter Weddle’s online newsletter about Best Practices in talent acquisition and leadership. Over 35,000 recruiting and sourcing professionals and executives read Peter’s insights and ideas and pass them along to their colleagues. When they do, they also see and share information about a single company: the newsletter’s exclusive sponsor. That organization is highlighted not once, but twice in the publication, providing extraordinary visibility for its brand and product and service offerings. So, reserve your spots right away. Call WEDDLE’s at 203.964.1888.

A Virtual Flyer in our Marketing Messages to Newsletter Readers. During the second and fourth week of every month, WEDDLE’s e-mails a marketing message consisting of three sections to its newsletter readers. Two of the sections provide content from WEDDLE’s; the third provides content from a single, highlighted vendor. That content can be your virtual flyer:

If you want to put your message in front of one of the most loyal audiences of readers on the Web, here’s your chance. Your message will be seen and read so it’s the perfect way to promote specific products or services, build your organization’s brand or announce a special event.

If you want to reach top recruiting and HR professionals without spending a fortune, there is no better platform than WEDDLE’s marketing messages to its newsletter readers. It’s an opportunity that’s priced to fit everyone’s advertising budget.

There’s only one spot available in each month’s message, so reserve your spots right away. Please call WEDDLE’s at 203.964.1888.

Training for current and/or prospective customers. WEDDLE’s offers a range of training programs that you can sponsor. They’re the perfect way to impress prospective customers and build relationships with current ones. They’re also great for training your own staff. These programs can be delivered at your location or in a toll-free audio format similar to WEDDLE’s public programs. You can select a single 75-minute program, pick two programs for a combined 2.5-hour seminar or three programs for a half-day workshop. All programs are delivered by WEDDLE’s Publisher, Peter Weddle. They include:

A-to-Z in Best Practices for Online Recruitment Advertising

Best Practices in Sourcing Passive Prospects Online

Blink Recruiting: Getting to “Yes” Fast With Passive Prospects

Building a Corporate Career Site for Top Talent

HR Leadership: the Antidote to Management-by-the-Numbers

Optimizing the Candidate Experience: The Secret to Recruiting Top Talent

Staffing Metrics That Count in the Corner Office

The Sum & Substance of a Great Employment Brand

Transforming Your Resume Database into a Candidate Gold Mine

For more information and to schedule a private WEDDLE’s training program for your customers, please call us at 203.964.1888.

Announcements & Other Important Stuff

WEDDLE’s Publications

WEDDLE’s 2007/8 books are now on the shelves of bookstores, public and academic libraries, career counseling centers, and college placement offices. What’s been the response so far? Consider this review for our Guide to Employment Sites on the Internet from the Career Planning and Adult Development Journal:

“WEDDLE’s ongoing commitment to providing real-time, real-world career industry information has resulted in an indispensable resource for the 21st century workforce and those who seek and secure talent.”

Our 2007/8 books include:

WEDDLE’s 2007/8 Guide to Employment Sites on the Internet. Called the “Zagat of the online employment industry” by the American Staffing Association, it provides full-page profiles of 350 of the best job boards in a range of occupations, industries and locations;

WEDDLE’s 2007/8 Directory of Employment Related Internet Sites. The “address book of the online employment industry,” it lists over 9,000 sites and organizes them by the occupational fields, industries and geographies on which they focus; and

WEDDLE’s 2007/8 Guide to Association Web Sites. The key to the “hidden talent market” online, it details the recruiting resources and capabilities that are provided at the Web-sites of over 1,900 associations and societies.

To order your copies, visit our 2007 catalog and secure server here or call 317.916.9424 right away.

The International Association of Employment Web Sites (IAEWS)

The IAEWS is the trade association for the global online employment services industry. Barely more than a year old, its membership now includes over 175 organizations operating over 850 sites worldwide.

The purpose of the Association is to promote our industry by contributing to the success of the companies in that industry. How does the IAEWS do that? Its activities include:

an annual Member Congress: in 2007, we’ll have two, both of which will provide access to thought leaders and opportunities for building business partnerships and alliances;

Member mini-meetings around the country, promoting Member dialogue and input;

Direct contact with and information from key government officials (e.g. OFCCP);

Priority access to industry research from other Members and the Association, itself;

Special Member benefits, including discounts on exhibiting and attending select recruiting conferences; and

Much, much more.

Membership is open to any of the following organizations that operate an employment site or sell products and services to those sites:

stand-alone enterprises,

professional associations and societies,

newspapers and other publications,

affinity or special interest groups, and

radio stations and other communications firms.

If your company or organization is not yet a Member, you’re missing out on some of the most important contacts and information you can have. To learn more about the Association, please visit its site or call the founder and Executive Director, Peter Weddle. You can reach him at 203.964.1888 or [email protected].

N

N

N

N