3E04 Information on EEO Complaints Filed with or by Other Agencies

COs must carefully examine all information regarding complaints against a contractor that they receive from federal, state and local agencies in response to a letter of inquiry. COs enter basic information about these complaints in I. Background of the Construction SCER, including:

• The agency with which the complaint was filed;
• The jurisdictional or legal basis (e.g., race, sex) of the complaint;
• The current status of the complaint; and
• The area of the contractor’s workforce involved in the complaint.

COs will note any patterns in the types of complaints filed and any discrimination findings made on them. For example, there may be a clustering of complaints filed by employees in certain trades, or by applicants or employees from a particular race, religion, ethnic group or sex; by covered veterans; or by individuals with disabilities. As the review progresses, COs must cross-reference complaints to any potential problem areas they identify. There may be, for example, indications of a lack of good faith efforts, statistical indicators of discrimination, or concentration or underrepresentation in areas where complaints were filed.

When appropriate, COs will contact the appropriate EEOC office or state or local FEP agency to arrange to review relevant discrimination complaint files as part of the compliance evaluation. This can be particularly useful when a CO identifies potential systemic problems in complaint areas.

On-site, COs must compare any information a contractor provides with respect to current or past complaints to the information received from other agencies. COs will note discrepancies and information not provided by the contractor for possible further investigation during the review, and will seek an explanation and additional information from the contractor.