The Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) this week issued another informal opinion letter, the second in as many months, this time addressing the question of whether OFCCP will “ratify” a contractor’s Pay Analysis Groupings (PAGs) for use in future compliance evaluations. PAGs are analytical groupings OFCCP uses to evaluate an employer’s compensation practices.
The letter, dated July 22, 2019, and signed by OFCCP Director Craig Leen, states that while OFCCP declines to agree to the “ratification” of PAGs, contractors can nevertheless “submit their PAG structure for review and to receive feedback from OFCCP, which OFCCP would take into account in future compliance evaluations.”
Absent a promise from OFCCP to actually ratify them, we would expect relatively few contractors to take OFCCP up on its offer to evaluate their PAGs, especially given a natural reluctance to voluntarily provide information to a government enforcement agency. Nonetheless, the letter does demonstrate a continued willingness by OFCCP Director Craig Leen to engage federal contractors, consistent with his pledge to focus on “transparency, certainty, efficiency, and recognition.”
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC) can read more here.