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| HR and the Law in the News September 2007, Volume 6, Issue 9 |
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| HR and the Law in the News September 2007, Volume 6, Issue 9 |
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Time to File? Do you have September 30th marked on your calendar to file your EEO-1 and/or VETS-100 reports? If not, should you? And have you gathered your 2007 data in accordance with the new categories and definitions for some of those reports? Covered employers must file the EEO-1 and VETS-100 reports by September 30th of each year. This article is provided as a summary only of some of the key provisions of this year's new reporting requirements. Who must file? Well, that depends (of course)! Let's start with the VETS-100 report. If you are a federal contractor or subcontractor with a federal contract of $25,000 or more you are required to file this annual report. This includes financial institutions that are: (1) FDIC insured; (2) serve as a depository of federal funds; or (3) sell and/or redeem U.S. savings bonds. For more information on the VETS-100 and its reporting requirements visit http://www.vets100.com/ NOTE: Reporting requirements may be different for certain contracts entered into or modified on or after December 1, 2003 but final regulations are still pending.
As for the EEO-1 report, private employers covered by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with 100 or more employees must file this report. In addition, those employers with federal contracts or first tier subcontracts of $50,000 or more and who have 50 or more employees are also required to file this report (this also includes financial institutions that serve as a depository of federal funds or serve as an issuing and paying agent of U.S. Savings Bonds). For more information on EEO-1 reporting visit http://www.eeoc.gov/eeo1survey/index.html
What gets reported? For the EEO-1 report, the employer records a snapshot, taken in any pay period in the month of July through September, of the employees in its workforce by gender and one of nine racial categories within each of ten job classifications, all defined in the EEO-1 report. Both the racial categories and the job groups have been expanded and partially redefined effective with this year's report. The U.S. EEOC recommends, but does not require, employers to resurvey their employees using the new racial categories. Employers will be required to resurvey for next year's report.
For the VETS-100 report, a similar snapshot is recorded but with regard to employees' status as a covered veteran as defined in the current VETS-100 report.
How is that data collected? For EEO-1 reporting, the revised federal regulations urge employers to obtain this information through employees' voluntary self-identification rather than relying upon the employer's visual survey of its workforce. For VETS-100 reporting, the employer must also use the voluntary self-identification form. Both forms must clearly and expressly state that submission of the information is voluntary.
Where and For How Long Should We Retain the Voluntary Self-ID Forms, EEO-1 and VETS-100 reports? Federal regulations provide that the voluntary self-identification forms should be retained in records separate from employees' basic personnel or human resource files. For non-government (sub)contractors, the voluntary self-ID forms should be maintained for at least one year following the employee's termination from employment. Covered federal (sub)contractors are required to keep these records for two years, except those with fewer than 150 employees OR who do not have a contract of at least $150,000 then records need to be retained for one year as described above. As for the reports themselves, employers should retain a copy of the most current EEO-1 report filed; a copy of the VETS-100 reports should be retained for three years.
Confused? Need assistance or voluntary self-identification forms for the EEO-1 and/or VETS-100 reports? Contact FiveL Company. Also visit the website links provided within the article above for additional information, FAQ's and more.
Hot Hits!! Education Corner Public Presentations Wednesday, September 5th, "Coordination of Leave and Disability" a webcast sponsored by Thompson Publishing, 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. (EST) Thursday, September 20th, "Legal & Legislative Conference" sponsored by the Cumberland Valley SHRM Chapter, 8:30 a.m. - noon, Hagerstown, MD Wednesday, September 26th, "Employment Law, Legislative & Regulatory Update" presented for the HR Association of Southern Maryland, 8:30 - 1:00, Solomons, MD. September's Client Training Programs "HR & the Law for Managers" (6 sessions!) "Maintaining an Inclusive Workplace" New SSN No-Match Regulations! Have you ever received a notice from the Social Security Administration or Department of Homeland Security (DHS) indicating that the Social Security Number (SSN) you've reported for an employee does not match their records? Have you wondered what to do next? May you legally ask the employee for further identification? Is your company liable if it turns out the individual is not lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. but provided you with false documents? On August 10th, DHS issued a final rule lending some clarification. Under the final rule, the employer is afforded a "safe harbor" by following these steps:
Under the final rule, if an employer follows these steps and it is later discovered that the employee was, in fact, not legally authorized to work in the U.S. the employer may avoid a presumption of having constructive knowledge that the employee was not legally authorized to work. The final rule takes effect September 14th. But Wait! Don't breathe a sigh of relief yet! Just last week, labor unions, the ACLU and others filed suit in a U.S. District Court seeking a restraining order to block the new rule on the basis that the rule will adversely impact legal immigrants and others as a result of flawed government records. So, as always, stay tuned! Happy Anniversary!! September will mark the completion of FiveL Company's fifth year in business. A very special thank you to each and every client and colleague who has supported the efforts along the way. Here is a snapshot of just some of the accomplishments in the last year:
Thank You. Walters is Featured in SHRM Video During the SHRM 59th Annual Conference and Exposition, Ms. Walters was interviewed regarding employers' rights and obligations to employees returning from covered service in the military under the federal USERRA law. If you are a national SHRM member, you can view this video.
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