The Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has updated its national percentage of veterans in the civilian labor force, an annual measure that most federal contractors use as their “protected veterans hiring benchmark.” The vets annual percentage is used by the agency to evaluate the progress a federal contractor is making in meeting its affirmative action obligations for military veterans under Section 4212 of the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA).
Effective March 31, 2022, OFCCP has reset the national percentage at 5.5%, down slightly from last year’s benchmark of 5.6%. For federal contractors that use the benchmark, it can be used for new affirmative action plan (AAP) annual cycles that begin on or after March 31. OFCCP does not provide any guidance on whether a contractor can reset its veteran hiring benchmark for AAPs that are in effect but expire at a much later date, most typically calendar year AAPs.
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC) can read more here.