Court Halts Blacklisting Executive Order

On October 24, the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Texas granted a request for preliminary injunction against parts of the Obama Administration’s implementation of the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces, or “Blacklisting” as it is known, Executive Order. As a result direct federal contractors will not—at this time—be required to report labor law violations with their bids on federal contract solicitations and awards.

In addition, the court halted the federal government from enforcing the order’s requirement regarding contractor arbitration agreements with employees covering disputes arising out of sexual assault or harassment disputes, among other things. The court, however, does not bar implementation of the order’s paycheck transparency requirement scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2017.

The Obama Administration will very likely take steps to counter this court order. The situation, therefore, remains fluid. It is unclear how long implementation of this Executive Order and its various requirements will be delayed. The court order certainly delays implementation of the labor law violation reporting for solicitations on contracts exceeding $50 million issued on or after October 25 and the arbitration agreement requirement also scheduled to take effect October 25. Nevertheless, it remains undetermined how or if this court order will impact other implementation deadlines. To review when those deadlines as currently scheduled, see AGC’s comprehensive review of the EO here.

AGC and other business groups are currently determining how best to proceed, including whether to file another case separately and/or bolster the current legal effort. Ultimately, AGC’s goal remains not only temporary relief, but the complete dismantling of this unconstitutional executive order and its unnecessary regulatory regime.

For more information, contact Jimmy Christianson at 703-837-5325.

Blacklisting Executive Order – What’s AGC Doing About It?

Source: AGC of America

Federal Contractors Face Additional Sanctions Under Final Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Regulation – Webinar Wednesday
TAKE ACTION: Urge Congress to Block Application of this EO

AGC has compiled a detailed analysis of the more than 850 pages of final regulations the Obama Administration issued last week to implement the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces (Blacklisting) Executive Order and will host a complementary webinar for AGC members on September 7. AGC members are encouraged to contact their U.S. Representative and Senators to support AGC legislative efforts to block the implementing regulations for this Executive Order from coming into effect as soon as Oct. 25, 2016.

As it stands, AGC-backed provisions in the House and Senate versions of the National Defense Authorization Act—a bill passed 54 consecutively years that helps fund the Department of Defense (DOD)—would generally prohibit application of the Executive Order and its implementing regulations on DOD contracts and most DOD contractors. AGC and its industry coalition allies are working to extend that restriction to all federal contracts and contractors government-wide. AGC is also part of an employer-wide coalition that is currently reviewing possible legal options to blocking implementation of this rule.

While AGC will continue its efforts to combat this Order on the legislative and legal fronts, AGC members must plan accordingly in the event these regulations come into effect. AGC will post updates and analysis of this rule at our website: http://www.agc.org/blacklisting.

For more information, contact Jimmy Christianson at 703-837-5325 or christiansonj@agc.org