1B00 Initial Contact with the Contractor

This subsection covers information that Investigators gather through their initial contact with the contractor, including contact information for the contractor and the contractor’s representative, and any information that may preclude the evaluation (e.g., establishment is closed, the establishment is part of an approved FAAP agreement, or OFCCP has completed a review of the establishment in the past 24 months). If the contractor contests OFCCP’s jurisdiction or provides any information that may preclude the evaluation, the Investigator should follow the process outlined in subsection 1B04 below.

a. Contractor Information. Before issuing a Scheduling Letter and Itemized Listing, Investigators must verify the following information:

• The name of the highest-ranking management official at the establishment;
• The legal name of the company;
• The name and email of the person responsible for the preparation and implementation of the contractor’s AAPs; and
• The correct mailing address for the establishment.

If an establishment is part of a larger entity, the Investigator must obtain the name of the corporate chief executive officer (CEO), the name of the corporate person responsible for EEO and affirmative action matters and the correct corporate mailing address. Investigators should verify this information and update CMS as necessary.

b. Representation. A contractor’s statement about representation can come during the initial contact or at some later point. When a contractor indicates that it is or will be represented by counsel or a consultant company, an Investigator must ask the contractor to provide written confirmation of the representation, including:

• The contact information for the representative that includes the representative’s name, address, email, and phone number; and
• The scope of the representative’s authority, including whether the authority granted to the representative extends to negotiating a settlement, if necessary, on behalf of the contractor.

An Investigator must also ask the contractor to clarify in writing as a part of the representation confirmation whether:

• All contacts, including routine ones to make appointments or to clarify data or other information, should be made through the representative; and
• All correspondence should be provided only to the representative or if a copy is to be provided to the contractor.

The Investigator obtains the same written confirmation if a person indicates to the Investigator or another representative of OFCCP that he or she represents the contractor. After receiving written confirmation of representation, an Investigator must handle contacts and correspondence according to its terms for the duration of the evaluation. The handling of contacts and correspondence will change if the contractor specifies a different period or subsequently alters its instructions. Alterations of representation instructions must be in writing.

Investigators provide the contractor’s highest-ranking management officials copies of all substantive documents that they mail. For these purposes, we define substantive documents as documents that this Manual requires an Investigator to mail. This would include, for example, any Predetermination Notice (PDN), Notice of Violation (NOV), Show Cause Notice (SCN), and CA.