From August 3-5, the Industry Liaison Group, a community of government contractors and members of the government contractor community, held its National Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina. The event featured various speakers on a multitude of topics, including pay equity and achieving equality in the workplace. Proskauer attorneys Connie Bertram, Guy Brenner, and Alex Weinstein attended the event.
On Friday, August 5, 2016, Connie Bertram and Guy Brenner presented to a packed room on the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order (the “Order”), better known as the Blacklisting rule. Some of our previous posts on the Order include: President Obama Signs Executive Order Addressing Contractors’ Employment and Labor Practices, Proposed Regulations For The Fair Pay And Safe Workplaces Released and NLRB Takes Steps To Facilitate Sharing Of Federal Contractor Labor Law Violations. As a reminder, the Order imposes a host of new obligations on government contractors with more than $500,000 in government contracts, including an obligation to report various labor law violations during the bid and proposal process, new pay transparency obligations, and restrictions on arbitration provisions.
Connie’s and Guy’s presentation provided an overview of the various new requirements stemming from the Order and its proposed implementing regulations. The final rule is expected this month. The presentation not only provided contractors with an overview of the requirements of the Order and the proposed regulations, but also provided practical guidance regarding the impact of the regulations and what contractors can do now to prepare for the new requirements.
The participants who attended the presentation were engaged and asked compelling questions throughout the program. The myriad of questions from the audience only further demonstrated the burden and expense that is expected to accompany the Order, as well as the confusion in the contractor community about the breadth and reach of the Order. That being said, as Connie and Guy explained to the participants, while the Order will be burdensome, with proper focus and assistance the requirements can be managed and even used to provide diligent government contractors with a competitive advantage in marketplace.
You can be sure that when the final regulations are issued we will provide a detailed analysis for our loyal blog readers. Stay tuned.