Can the EEOC Eliminate the EEO-1 Report?

Why Employers Should Closely Watch the Growing Debate Over Workforce Data Collection For nearly six decades, the EEO-1 report has served as one of the federal government’s primary workforce data collection tools in the fight against workplace discrimination. Employers with 100 or more employees, including many federal contractors, have long been required to submit demographic…
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OFCCP Is Fully Funded for 2026: Part 1 – What Federal Contractors Should Expect Next

For much of 2025 and early 2026, federal contractors have watched the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) become unusually quiet. Compliance reviews stopped. Enforcement activity nearly disappeared. The contractor portal was shut down, and the agency’s future was publicly questioned. That is why the most recent appropriations news is significant: OFCCP has now…
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EO 14173 Enforcement Trends to Watch in 2026

As 2026 approaches, the compliance landscape shaped by Executive Order 14173, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” is entering a more enforcement-focused phase. Based on the recent HR Unlimited Roundtable with former OFCCP and EEOC leaders, federal contractors must brace for a dramatic and high-stakes shift in anti-discrimination enforcement in 2026. The focus is…
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Part I: The New Compliance Landscape Under EO 14173

In her recent remarks, former OFCCP Director Catherine Eschbach emphasized that the compliance environment for federal contractors is undergoing a profound transformation under Executive Order 14173, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.” She explained that this order establishes a “whole-of-government approach” to identifying and eliminating unlawful DEI practices, meaning that oversight will no longer…
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Proactive Compliance in the Post-EO 14173 Era: A Practical Guide to Self-Auditing

Eight months after the issuance of Executive Order 14173, the federal contracting community has entered a new compliance era, one defined not by the creation of Affirmative Action Plans, but by the ability to prove nondiscrimination through certification. The transition from Executive Order 11246 to EO 14173 may have simplified paperwork, but it also raised…
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