A federal court has issued a preliminary injunction blocking implementation of several major provisions of President Obama’s controversial Executive Order (E.O.) 13673, Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces, or “blacklisting,” as well as the E.O.’s implementing regulations and guidance (collectively the blacklisting rules), from going into effect.
However, one major provision of the blacklisting rules survived the court’s scrutiny: the so-called paycheck transparency provisions, which as of now are still scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2017.
The paycheck transparency provisions essentially require covered federal contractors to notify employees of their rights under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by providing detailed wage statements to all employees performing work under a covered contract, and also require the contractor to inform any independent contractors performing work under the contract of their independent contractor status.
And while many contractors already provide pay stubs or similar notices to employees containing much of the information required by the blacklisting rules, covered contractors are well-advised to review current practices to see if adjustments should be made before signing a covered contract. In addition, most covered contractors will have to create a process to ensure that independent contractors receive the required notice, that FLSA-exempt employees are informed that they are exempt, and that notice in a language other than English is provided when required.
Members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) can read more here.