Jessica Abrahams, Stacie Linguist, Author at Laborsphere

Federal District Court Issues Nationwide Temporary Ban on Executive Order 13950

Last week, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued a nationwide preliminary injunction banning the enforcement of Sections 4 and 5 of Executive Order 13950, a controversial federal directive purportedly enacted “to combat offensive and anti-American race and sex stereotyping and scapegoating” by prohibiting federal contractors and grantees from inculcating such views in their diversity and inclusion workplace trainings. While the preliminary injunction represents a significant win for the government contracting community, it is not a permanent injunction. It remains to be seen whether the government will appeal the order, or whether the incoming Biden administration will rescind the Executive Order in its entirety.

For the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.

OFCCP Issues Last Directive Under CERT Principles for OFCCP Policies and Practices

When the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) first adopted the Certainty, Efficiency, Recognition and Transparency (CERT) principles, the agency’s aim was simple: Improve governance and help the federal contracting community better understand their obligations. With the December 15 release of the Certainty Directive — the fourth and final directive under the CERT principles — the OFCCP has established a process to ensure clarity, which commits the agency to ongoing review and clarification of its policies and practices.

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OFCCP Issues Final Rule to Clarify the Application of Executive Order 11246’s Religious Exemption

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) continued its clarity tour last week, publishing a final rule in the Federal Register regarding Executive Order 11246 and its religious exemption. The final rule explains the types of contractors that qualify for religious exemption and elucidates the latitude of such contractors to make employment-related decisions based on religion. The OFCCP maintains that its goal was to acknowledge case law permitting religious organizations to apply religious belief defenses to claims of alleged unlawful employment discrimination, but opponents believe the final rule impermissibly protects the free exercise of religion above protecting the rights of the LGBTQ community.

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Federal Agencies Issue Contract Clauses Implementing ‘Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping’

President Trump issued the “Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping” on September 22, but no federal regulations have subsequently been released on how to implement the Order. In the absence of such regulations, the DOD and NASA recently issued memorandums to provide instructions on the way to implement the Order in solicitations and contracts.

For the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.

Civil Rights Organizations File Lawsuit Seeking to Halt President Trump’s Executive Order Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping

The controversy surrounding President Trump’s “Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping” continues to snowball. After the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and 150-plus business organizations sent a letter to the president contesting the Order and requesting that it be withdrawn, NAACP attorneys took contractor objections a step further, launching a class action lawsuit on behalf of the National Urban League, the National Fair Housing Alliance and others similarly situated. Filed on October 29, 2020, the suit called the Order “an extraordinary and unprecedented act by the Trump Administration to undermine efforts to foster diversity and inclusion in the workplace” and further challenged the federal directive on constitutional grounds.

For the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.

OFCCP Issues Request for Information Supporting President Trump’s Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping

Executive Order 13950 first made waves in September, with concerns that its stated goal of stamping out “offensive and anti-American race and sex stereotyping and scapegoating” might curtail federal contractors’ ability to provide diversity workplace trainings. After publishing guidance clarifying the particulars of the Executive Order and launching a hotline to receive complaints, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs is now seeking comments, information and materials from the public regarding potentially noncompliant trainings. The agency’s Request for Information was published in the Federal Register on October 21, 2020.

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