EEOC Reports are just another compliance requirement that must be met when you perform work on government funded/prevailing wage jobs – in addition to the submission of a weekly certified payroll report. In this Q & A we’ll discuss your obligations, what types of forms you might need to file, and when you have to file them.
What is the EEOC and what do they do?
The U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee because of the person’s race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetic information.
What is an EEOC Report?
An EEOC Report is really nothing more than than a report that includes how many employees you have that work under specific work/trade classifications by race and gender; including any apprentices or on-the-job trainees.
Some State specific reports also will want the number of hours worked by classification, race, and gender for the month as well as cumulative hours over the life of the project.
Who has to file an EEOC Report?
Most employers with at least 15 employees are covered by EEOC laws. Most labor unions and employment agencies are also covered.
What report must I file?
Unfortunately, that depends on whether you are working on Federal or State funded construction projects.
State agencies can require that you submit an EEOC report on a weekly or monthly basis, if the construction project is funded with State money.
If you perform work on Federal-Aid Highway Construction projects, you may be required to submit monthly reports – using either a Federal or State DOT specific form as well as an Annual Report such as Form FWHA-1391 . Federal-Aid Highway Construction Contractors Annual EEO Report, which is usually due by the 15th of August and uses employment data from the last full pay period ending in July.
NOTE: Because most State and Federal EEOC Reports are still paper forms, many software programs will automatically generate these reports for you – this is a huge timesaver.
What are the race/ethnicity categories that must be reported?
Currently there are seven race/ethnicity categories: Hispanic or Latino, White, Black or African-American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Two or More Races.
You will need to track and record race information and can ask employees to voluntarily provide you with this information. In Section 4 of the EEO-1 instruction booklet you’ll find sample language that you can use in an employee questionnaire to explain the EEO-1 voluntary self-identification process – page 4 of the pdf found at https://www.eeoc.gov/employers/eeo1survey/upload/instructions_form.pdf
If an employee declines to provide you with this information, you can visually make this determination.
Are there any other EEOC Reports that I might have to file?
Oh yes, reporting compliance can be very confusing!
If you have 100 or more employees or are a federal contrator, you will most likely also have to file the EEO-1, VETS-100, or VETS-100A forms as well.
Private employers with 100 or more employees and federal contractors with 50 or more employees and a contract of $50.000.00 or more require the submission of an annual EEO-1 Report (also known as the Employer Information Report EEO-1) to the Joint Reporting Committee (JRC) – a committee of the EEOC and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). Like the other reports we’ve mentioned, the EEO-1 track employee data by race, ethnicity, sex, and job/work/trade classification.
The EEO-1 must be filed each year by September 30, so the deadline is fast approaching – and you should have received instructions in the mail in mid-August. As an employer, you can use employment figures from any pay period in July through September. Online reporting is the preferred method of filing – you can file online at https://www.eeoc.gov/employers/eeo1survey/index.cfm
Some contractors, regardless of the number of employees they have, must also file a VETS-100 or VETS-100A form. Both of these forms require that you report the number of veterans you employ and their job/work/trade classifications and these reports are usually due on September 30 as well.
The VETS-100 form must be filed by contractors with current contracts of at least $25,000.00 that were entered into before December 1, 2003.
The VETS-100A form must be filed by contractors that entered into a contract valued at $100,000.00 or more after December 1, 2003 OR if you entered into a contract before December 1, 2003 and that contract now has a value of $100,000.00 or more.
Further information can be found at https://www.dol.gov/vets/vets-100.html If you have questions about either the VETS-100 or VETS-100A forms you can get help by calling (866) 237-0275 or by sending an email to VETS100-customersupport@dol.gov
