Comment period on proposed sex discrimination rule extended

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor has announced a two-week extension of the comment period for its proposed rule governing the obligations of federal contractors and subcontractors not to discriminate on the basis of sex in their employment practices.

The extension ensures that the public has time to comment on the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court's March 25, 2015, decision in Young v. United Parcel Service. That decision involved application of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to pregnancy discrimination in the workplace. The Labor Department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs follows Title VII principles when enforcing the law against employment discrimination by federal contractors and subcontractors.

OFCCP published a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register on January 30, 2015, with a March 31 deadline to submit comments. The comment period will be extended through Tuesday, April 14. To read and comment on the proposed rule, please visit http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/SDNPRM/index.html.

OFCCP enforces Executive Order 11246, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974. These three laws require contractors and subcontractors that do business with the federal government to follow the fair and reasonable standard that they not discriminate in employment on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran. For more information, please call OFCCP's toll-free helpline at 800-397-6251 or visit http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/.