Federal contract oversight employees contemplate resignation offer, as agency faces layoffs and mission realignment

Labor Department employees who enforce equal opportunity requirements for federal contractors have until 6 p.m. Monday to decide whether to take an offer to leave federal service, as their agency faces the possibility of almost total elimination with remaining staff being directed to unwind their past work. 

Deferred Resignation 2.0 

Workers at the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, as well as the International Labor Affairs Bureau, Women’s Bureau and Office of Public Affairs, received an email late on April 4 that they were eligible for a second round of the deferred resignation program. Under the initiative, DOL employees can keep their pay and benefits through Sept. 30 if they resign by April 14. 

The message also said eligible staff could utilize the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority by the same deadline in order to retire by the end of the calendar year. 

Government Executive has previously reported on an internal February DOL memo in which officials proposed slashing OFCCP’s workforce by 90% (reducing the number of employees from nearly 500 to 50) and cutting the number of regional and field offices from 54 to four.
“Employees are worried about their livelihoods, that they're being pushed out of their jobs and not given options [and] not given enough time to make real-life decisions for their families,” said one OFCCP employee who preferred to be unnamed due to fears of retaliation. “It just don’t seem like they’re sending things and doing things in good faith.” 

What is OFCCP? 

The agency was respon ..

Support the originator by clicking the read the rest link below.