Recruitment has undergone a seismic shift, with remote hiring and virtual interviews becoming the standard norm. Despite these advancements, HR professionals grapple with persistent challenges, particularly in staying compliant with evolving regulations and oversight from recruitment agencies. Employers must grasp five critical areas of recruiting compliance and acquaint themselves with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). These areas entail discrimination, pay equity, salary history inquiries, Ban-the-Box policies, and pre-employment drug screening practices.
The EEOC safeguards against discrimination based on various protected classes, while the OFCCP ensures that federal contractors uphold non-discrimination and affirmative action mandates. Effective compliance requires meticulous recordkeeping, evaluation of outreach efforts, and strict adherence to Ban-the-Box laws and pre-employment drug screening regulations. Recruiters must undergo comprehensive training to mitigate unintentional biases and discrimination, thereby adhering to proper interview procedures and crafting unbiased job descriptions. Paycor offers a comprehensive solution to assist employers in navigating the complex landscape of recruiting laws and regulations. Their platform facilitates efficient candidate sourcing, application tracking, and compliance reporting.
Employers need to be aware of the intricacies of recruiting compliance. Thirty states have enacted laws prohibiting salary history inquiries, aiming to ensure gender pay equity. Employers, especially those with women leaders, should be vigilant about compliance. A study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed significant pay discrepancies in 2019, with women earning an average of 71 cents for every dollar earned by men. Furthermore, California mandates employers with over 100 employees to annually report pay and hours-worked data by various demographics such as establishment, job category, sex, race, and ethnicity, to the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH).
The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting discrimination in employment based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, transgender status, and sexual orientation), national origin, age (40 or older), disability, or genetic information. Private companies, state agencies, and labor unions with 15 or more employees must adhere to EEOC regulations. In 2023, the EEOC received over 65,000 discrimination charges, resulting in 143 discrimination lawsuits filed by the agency, a more than 50% increase over 2022. They secured over $513 million for victims of employment discrimination in private sector and state and local government workplaces.
The OFCCP mandates that all federal contractors conducting business with the government in excess of $10,000 cannot discriminate against employees based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The law also enforces affirmative action and requires contractors to make efforts to employ qualified individuals with disabilities, Vietnam-era veterans, and other covered veterans. The OFCCP frequently cites four violations related to recruiters during compliance reviews: job listings, poor outreach/positive recruitment, ineffective evaluation of outreach, and recordkeeping. Proper recordkeeping is crucial, particularly regarding applicant data, to provide a comprehensive narrative during OFCCP audits.
Ban-the-Box initiatives, adopted by 37 states and 100+ cities and counties nationwide, aim to eliminate questions regarding convictions and arrest records from job applications. Pre-employment drug screening laws have also evolved due to changes in marijuana legislation across states and territories. Employers must familiarize themselves with these evolving laws and their impact on the recruitment process.
Ensuring compliance during the recruiting process requires comprehensive training for recruiters to avoid unintentional discrimination and biases. Employers should conduct audits of job descriptions and requirements to eliminate possible biases, ensuring adherence to recruiting compliance requirements in the long run.
Designed by recruiting experts to meet employers’ needs, PayBridge’s Recruiting and Applicant Tracking solution will help you navigate the intricate maze of recruiting laws and regulations to include compliance reporting, ensuring alignment with EEOC/OFCCP regulations. Our solution provides support for the entire employee life cycle, taking prospective employees from application to onboarding. Stay compliant as you modernize your employee experience with secure, fully-electronic tasks and build a team that gets behind your vision and take your business to the next level.