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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Enforcement Begins: Inside the EEOC’s post-EO 14173 Settlements

When Executive Order 14173 was issued in January 2025, many employers assumed that the revocation of Executive Order 11246 marked the end of federal oversight of affirmative action and diversity initiatives. Eight months later, that assumption has been proven dangerously wrong. While the structure of oversight has changed, enforcement has not disappeared. It has shifted….
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DOJ Releases Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination

On July 30, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) released long-anticipated guidance clarifying what federal law requires and prohibits when it comes to workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. While some may have expected a sweeping overhaul, the DOJ’s message was straightforward: employment decisions must be rooted in merit-based criteria, not identity-based preferences. …
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Why Pausing Nondiscrimination Practices is a Costly Mistake

  For Federal Contractors, EO 14173 Raises the Stakes—and Continuing EO 11246 Practices Protects Your Bottom Line When Executive Order 11246 was revoked and replaced with EO 14173, some federal contractors—especially those under private equity ownership—interpreted the shift as a green light to pause their long-standing nondiscrimination practices. This would be a critical misstep. Not…
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