by On January 20, 2023, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published a new Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL) for federal contractors. The CSAL, found at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp/scheduling-list, is a public posting that serves as a courtesy notice to contractors selected for an audit or review by the agency. Federal contractors and subcontractors in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin are on the list.
The actual agency review starts once the contractor receives OFCCP’s scheduling letter, also known as the 30-day letter. It is known as the 30-day letter because recipients have thirty days to respond to the questions in the notice. In addition to sending in all the relevant Affirmative Action Plans for the contractor facility selected for review, the contractor must provide answers and supporting documentation on various policies and practices.
Federal contractors who have been audited before will note changes in OFCCP review procedures.
- Before 2022, contractors were given at least 45 days between the publishing of the CSAL and the issuing of individual scheduling letters. Last spring, OFCCP announced that it would begin issuing scheduling letters as soon as the CSAL is published.
- The OFCCP has a new process for submitting responses during the review. An on-line portal for contractors was introduced in 2022 and it will be used to submit responses during the review.
- The agency has proposed an updated scheduling letter with expanded questions on issues such as equitable compensation. See our November 25, 2022 post, OFCCP Proposes Updated Scheduling Letter to Require More Detailed Information from Federal Contractors, for details. The public comment period for the proposed letter recently closed. All reports are that the new scheduling letter will not be used in this round of audits, but the questions in the proposed letter are likely to be part of the review process after the contractor’s initial submissions. After the contractor submits its initial responses to the list of questions in the scheduling letter, the agency representative will follow-up to take a deeper dive into contractor practices. In some instances agency representatives may interview managers and employees regarding the contractor’s policies and practices.
The agency website, https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp, has many resources that explain the details of the review process and provide various resources to assist contractors being reviewed. Particularly useful are the FAQs, offering answers to common questions related to reviews. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp/faqs/scheduling-lists
If your company has contracts with federal departments or agencies, check the latest CSAL to see if your company is listed. The timeline for response is tight, and the agency has stated that it will only grant additional time for contractors to respond to scheduling letters in limited situations.
