Overview
- The US Supreme Court blocked the OSHA vaccine and testing mandate for large private employers.
- The Federal Contractor mandate established by EO 14042 is still subject to a nationwide injunction entered by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia on December 7, 2021. This injunction has been appealed to the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals by the Biden Administration. This injunction ordered the federal government to temporarily stop enforcement of the COVID vaccine mandate for federal contractors.
- Effective January 30, 2022, the federal contractor minimum wage will be increased to $15 per hour for covered employees working on covered contracts.
- Contractors will be able to register for the OFCCP’s new Contractor Portal on February 1, 2022.
- The 2021 EEO-1 Data Collection period is tentatively set to open on April 12, 2022.
- Group health plans and insurers must cover or reimburse in full for over-the-counter COVID-19 tests.
Details:
- The US Supreme Court blocked the OSHA vaccine and testing mandate for large private employers.
- While the court blocked this measure, they did rule in favor of the CMS vaccine mandate for healthcare workers who are employed by organizations that accept Medicare or Medicaid payments.
- The Federal Contractor mandate established by EO 14042 is still subject to a nationwide injunction entered by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia on December 7, 2021. This injunction has been appealed to the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals by the Biden Administration. This injunction ordered the federal government to temporarily stop enforcement of the COVID vaccine mandate for federal contractors.
- Contractors should still be in compliance with the masking and social distancing requirements of EO 14042 and be ready for compliance with the vaccine mandate if it is reinstated upon appeal. The Redstone GCI team has developed resources for contractors, and we are happy to assist you throughout this process.
- Effective January 30, 2022, the federal contractor minimum wage will be increased to $15 per hour for covered employees working on covered contracts.
- The Wage and Hour Division recently released a Field Assistance Bulletin to clarify the requirements of Executive Order (EO) 14026. This FAB identifies four categories of contracts covered by the EO:
- procurement contracts for construction covered by the Davis-Bacon Act (DBA);
- service contracts covered by the Service Contract Act (SCA);
- concessions contracts; and,
- contracts entered into with the Federal Government in connection with Federal property or lands and related to offering services for Federal employees, their dependents, or the general public.
- Additionally, the FAB defines the geographic scope of the EO’s application, as well as identifies the workers covered by the EO. The FAB includes information on worker notice requirements, subcontractor requirements, recordkeeping requirements, and anti-retaliation provisions and remedies.
- Contractors will be able to register for the OFCCP’s new Contractor Portal on February 1, 2022.
- The OFCCP’s Contractor Portal is a new platform where covered contractors and subcontractors must certify if they are meeting their requirement to develop and maintain Affirmative Action Plan(s). The certification period will begin on March 31, 2022 and end on June 30, 2022. The OFCCP is hosting a free webinar on February 1, 2022 that will include an overview of the Contractor Portal, a demonstration of the registration process, and a question and answer session.
- The 2021 EEO-1 Data Collection period is tentatively set to open on April 12, 2022.
- The EEOC announced that EEO-1 filers who are multi-establishment employers with establishments where the headcount is less than 50 employees must report the establishment as a Type 8 report. Traditionally, employers who fell into the above category would be given the option to report as a Type 6 or Type 8. Report Type 6 is no longer accepted. The EEOC describes this change as part of their “continuing efforts to modernize the agency’s EEO data collections and to improve the quality of data collected.”
- Group health plans and insurers must cover or reimburse in full for over-the-counter COVID-19 tests.
- The Biden administration is providing each household with four free over-the-counter COVID-19 tests. Along with this measure, the administration is requiring that all health plans cover or reimburse plan participants for up to 8 at-home COVID-19 tests per month.
Sheri joined Redstone Government Consulting, Inc. in December 2012 as a Human Resources Consultant. She provides HR consulting services to our customers on a wide range of issues, from specific projects to an ongoing outsourced solution of the human resources function. Sheri has two decades of experience in providing a comprehensive assessment of all areas of HR, including establishing and implementing policies and practices, contract transition efforts/onboarding, and investigations. Sheri’s experience covers a broad spectrum of compensation planning and analysis for total compensation projects, reasonableness assessments including executive compensation, compensation philosophy development, total reward strategies, benefits analysis, market pay and pay equity evaluations. She regularly supports clients with the analysis and mapping of labor categories and the preparation and analysis of wage calculations and supports clients in pricing disputes with DCAA. Sheri has a wealth of experience in navigating the many compliance challenges associated with Service Contract Act and Davis Bacon Act. She has been a valuable resource to our clients in all these areas. She stays abreast of the various requirements of the Department of Labor and, of great importance to government contractors, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, as well as other federal and state regulations impacting human resources. Professional Experience Prior to joining Redstone Government Consulting, Inc., Sheri served in various roles in the Human Resources arena. While employed by a mid-size government contractor she assisted with database development, recruiting, affirmative action planning and contract proposals. Sheri later became an Employment Specialist with one of the largest employers in Huntsville, where she assisted and led managers in the interpretation and documentation of the progressive disciplinary process, conducted employee investigations and allegations of discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful discharge and employee disputes, conducted unemployment hearings and conducted new employee orientation. Sheri developed and presented management training, administered facility compensation plan, monitored staffing budgets and wrote job descriptions and handbook revisions.
About Redstone GCI
Redstone GCI is a consulting firm focused on fulfilling the needs of government contractors in all areas of compliance. With a singular mission to help contractors through the multiple layers of “red tape,” we allow contractors to focus on what they do best – support their mission with the U.S. Government. We are home to a group of consultants made up of GovCon industry professionals, CPAs, attorneys, and retired government audit and acquisition professionals.
Our focus and knowledge of audit and compliance functions administered by DCAA and DCMA will always be at the heart of what we do. However, for the past decade, we’ve strategically grown to support other areas of the government contractor back-office with that same level of focus and expertise. We’ve added expertise in contracts management, subcontract administration, proposal pricing, various software systems, HR and employment law, property administration, manufacturing, data analytics/reporting, Grant specialists, M&A, and many other areas. When we see a trend in the needs of contractors, we act to ensure we can provide the best expertise in the market to fulfill those needs.
One thing our clients can be certain of is that with the Redstone GCI Team in your corner, there is no problem too big and no issue too technical for our team to tackle.
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