A federal contract can be a benefit to a growing contractor. Indeed, being awarded such a contract can be a complicated process, but federal regulations are ostensibly in place to ensure that taxpayer money is spent wisely. As such, prospective federal contractors will have to be aware of new guidelines regarding the reporting of labor law violations.
The U.S. Department of Labor and the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council recently announced final rules as the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order is implemented. Under this Order, prospective federal contractors must disclose past labor law violations.
Such companies are already required to disclose findings from administrative or civil proceedings, but the current rules do not give agencies that award contracts a full picture of a company’s track record of compliance (or lack thereof).
The new rule calls for companies to disclose violations of more than a dozen workplace problems if they were experienced or adjudicated within the last three years before applying for a federal contract; among them, safety and health violations.
Ultimately, the final rule calls for contractors to provide enough information to agencies so that informed decisions can be made regarding the award of federal contracts. Agencies are still vulnerable to making decisions to awarding contracts to companies that cheat their workers and ignore safety rules.
The new regulations will be effective on October 25 and will be implemented in phases to ensure applicants understand their responsibilities. If you have questions about how the new rules may affect your application, an experienced workers comp attorney in Los Angeles can advise you.
