The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has launched two initiatives to aid veterans seeking jobs.

The first initiative, called Ensuring the Accessibility of Online Application Systems, is designed to ensure that federal contractors provide equal opportunities to qualified applicants with disabilities to compete for jobs when using an online application system. Electronic job application systems must be accessible to and usable by applicants who have disabilities. If the online systems are not accessible, the contractor must provide a reasonable accommodation that allows an equal opportunity to compete for a job, unless such an accommodation would cause undue hardship. All OFCCP compliance evaluations will now include a review of the contractor’s online application systems and whether reasonable accommodations are made when requested. Where a complaint is filed involving a federal contractor’s online application system, OFCCP will investigate the complaint rather than referring it to the EEOC.

The Good Faith Initiative for Veterans Employment (”G-FIVE”), creates an incentive for federal contractors to increase their employment of and affirmative action for covered veterans under the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (”VEVRAA”) by creating factors by which a contractor can earn recognition as a G-FIVE contractor. Contractors that qualify for a G-FIVE rating will be excluded from an OFCCP compliance evaluation for three years following the date the recipient receives the rating.  Some factors include:

• Evidence of covered veterans in the contractor’s labor force;
• Evidence of an increase in the number of covered veterans in the contractor’s labor force;
• Number of partnerships with local veterans’ service organizations to employ or advance covered veterans;
• Recruitment efforts at educational institutions to reach students who are covered veterans;
• Number of job advertisements in the local community targeting veterans;
• Number of on-the-job training opportunities for covered veterans.

Based on the outcome of a full compliance review, each year the Regional Director will recommend contractors to the National Office that have demonstrated outstanding achievements in the employment of covered veterans.  Contractors may also self-nominate for recognition.

The three-year exclusion from OFCCP compliance evaluations will not apply where a complaint or investigation by the EEOC or a state agency suggests equal employment opportunity issues that warrant an evaluation.