On August 19, 2022, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published a notice in the Federal Register that an investigative reporter has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for EEO-1 Report data filed by federal contractors (including first-tier subcontractors) from 2016 through 2020. Federal contractors who don’t want their data to be released have until September 19, 2022, to file an objection. The OFCCP will consider the statements from federal contractors as the agency evaluates what information (if any) it’s required to hand over.
The OFCCP has posted helpful FAQs explaining the FOIA request. The request only covers the consolidated “Type 2” report, which is one of the reports that multi-location companies are required to file, in which EEO-1 data for all locations is consolidated into a single report, not broken out by location. For example, if a company has five locations, with 100 employees at each one, the Type 2 report will show summary figures for all 500 employees on one consolidated report, sorted by 10 government-defined job categories and by race/ethnicity and sex. It doesn’t include compensation amounts, hours worked, or location-specific employment figures.
If your organization has only one location, the FOIA request doesn’t apply to you, because only multi-location companies file “Type 2” reports. The FOIA request also doesn’t apply to reports filed by organizations that weren’t federal contractors at the time of filing (i.e., they didn’t check the “federal contractor” box on the form).
To file an objection, the easiest approach is to use the OFCCP’s Submitter’s Response Portal. The portal poses specific questions prompting you to explain why you believe your data should be kept confidential. It doesn’t allow you to upload attachments, though, so if you want to include attachments, you should instead submit your objection via email or postal mail. Either way, you should still answer the agency’s specific questions in your response. (Note: When completing the fields in the portal, “POC” means “Point of Contact.”)
Tips: Filing an objection is no guarantee that your data won’t be released, so make your case as strong as possible when you answer the agency’s questions. Also, don’t wait until the last minute. The portal could be overwhelmed with submissions in the final days, or technical glitches could occur. Questions? Contact your general business counsel or Karen Davis (senior employment attorney with Vigilant Law Group at KarenD@vigilantlaw.com or 503-603-4426).
