Federal contractors, large and small, will be feeling the pressure over the coming years as the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) readies itself for a full-fledged assault on employers.

The OFCCP has announced two Final Rules to improve hiring and employment of veterans and persons with disabilities. The new rules had been highly anticipated for the last several years and are part of the Obama administration's policy initiative to increase employment of disabled and veteran workers.

The first Final Rule updates requirements under the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) of 1974. It provides federal contractors with a quantifiable hiring metric either based on the national percentage of veterans in the workforce (currently eight percent) or their own benchmark based on the best available data. The latter must be established on a facility-wide basis. The OFCCP intends to post a Benchmark Database to assist contractors in that process. The benchmarks are designed to measure the progress and effectiveness of the contractor's good faith efforts, and are not designed to be “objectives or targets.”