Federal Contracting in California
A federal contractor is a person, company or any other entity that is involved in a contract with the federal government of the United States, which buys the contractor’s products or services. Federal contracting is regulated with a strict set of specific terms and conditions, which means that federal contractors work under special laws in different condition than individuals or other entities in the private sector.
Laws and Regulations
Laws and regulations applied to federal contracting are also applied to their subcontractors. Subcontractors work with prime contractors to help them provide final products, goods or services which the government acquires.
Federal contracts are subject to specific labor laws, which means federal contractors must be in compliance with various laws that protect workers in their workplace. The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), as a division of U.S. Department of Labor Employment Standards Administration, makes sure that employers who work with the government are in compliance with distinct laws which prevent discrimination and impose affirmative action.
Fighting against discrimination is implemented in the core of these laws.
Therefore, according to Executive Order 11246, every government contractor who does over $10,000 in government business per year is strictly forbidden from discriminating against workers on the basis of race, color, religion, gender or nationality.
Disabilities
Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 also states that they are prohibited from discriminating workers with disabilities and mandates affirmative actions to help disabled workers in becoming more qualified employees. Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (VEVRAA) obliges federal contractors (who do over $25,000 in yearly government business) to prevent discrimination of individuals with veteran status and also provide affirmative action in all employment or advancement practices for qualified veterans.
Equal Opportunities
Federal contractors are also required to comply with basic requirements set by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). This means they must prevent discrimination, post Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) posters, include an EEO statement in employment advertising, keep records and file EEO reports on a yearly basis.
In addition to being legally protected from discrimination in the workplace, workers who work for federal contractors also enjoy other benefits.
In September of 2016, a law was established to secure paid sick leave for federal contractors. In addition, federal contractors and their workers have the right to know how much their colleagues are getting paid.
Pay transparency makes sure that every individual gets valuable information to help them negotiate a fair paycheck, which prevents improper treatment to workers.
Employees of federal contractors have the right to file a complaint if they believe they have been mistreated or discriminated in any way.