DOL Intensifies Anti-Bias Enforcement of Government Contractors

The U.S. Labor Department office that polices government contractors intensified its enforcement of anti-bias laws under President Joe Biden, a marked change from the Trump administration’s focus on proactive measures, several management attorneys said.

While the DOL’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs hasn’t announced new litigation under Biden, the way its investigators are carrying out their mission has clearly changed—a trend that more than a half-dozen management attorneys said was evident soon after Inauguration Day.

The contractor watchdog’s audits are now more thorough, investigators’ followup questions more probing, and there’s been a renewed emphasis on rooting out pay ...