RSSVetJobs Early Eagle
Issue 10:7, Wednesday, July 1, 2009
www.vetjobs.com
VetJobs is an appropriate employment service delivery system for EEOC, VEVRAA/JVA and OFCCP compliance support!
The VetJobs Early Eagle is for member employers, recruiters, friends and supporters of VetJobs. Feel free to forward this newsletter to friends and other employers.
This issue sponsored by WEDDLE’s and TECHEXPO Top Secret
Contents:
1. Message from the Top
2. Supreme Court Says “Strong Basis” Needed in Disparate Impact Cases
3. IRS Offers Tax Credit Guidance to Businesses Hiring Unemployed Veterans and Certain Youth
4. DOL Increasing Auditing Staff
5. Compliance Update – Department of Labor Administrative Review Board
6. National Veterans’ Training Institute (NVTI)
7. National Guard and Reserve Mobilized as of June 23, 2009
8. Significant Events this Month in Military History
Thank you for reading the VetJobs Early Eagle employer newsletter. If you like this newsletter and what VetJobs and the VFW do to assist veterans and their family member find employment, please go to http://www.weddles.com/poll.htm and vote VetJobs for the WEDDLE’s User’s Choice Award!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
1. Message from the Top
We enjoyed meeting old friends and making new acquaintances at the 61st Annual Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) Conference in New Orleans, LA, this past week. While attendance was definitely down, 5,700 versus the 11,000 in Chicago last year, we appreciated having the extra time to talk with many of you. I was excited to hear of so many companies that are now hiring and looking for veterans! VetJobs is proud to be the longest continuously exhibiting military group at SHRM. For ten years VetJobs has represented veterans to the human resource community at SHRM conventions. Your use of VetJobs has made us the leading military job board on the Internet!
With your help, VetJobs has been averaging about 28,000 real jobs a day on the site. This is a 3% increase over the same time period last year. VetJobs is one of the few job boards on the internet that has more jobs posted over the same time last year. Fortunately, many of you want to hire veterans and many more need candidates with security clearances. Your support in hiring veterans, especially the wounded warriors, is appreciated. America would not have its freedoms or a free market economy if our military was not there to protect us!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
I am pleased to announce that VetJobs has been selected by Maid Brigade franchise to be one of the judges on a panel to award 100 free Maid Brigade franchises this fall. Yes, I did say free! This is going to be a very exciting competition as veterans must compete for these franchises. Many studies have indicated that veterans make better entrepreneurs than others because veterans can better assess risk and have better leadership skills than most. If you know of a veteran who wants to be an entrepreneur and own their own business, please refer them to http://www.maidbrigadegiveaway.com/ for more details on how they could become a winner!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
This month we celebrate the Fourth of July holiday, a time when families throughout the country attend picnics, races, parades, political rallies and fireworks displays. Congress established Independence Day as a holiday in 1870. In 1938 Congress reaffirmed it as a holiday. I would encourage everyone to learn and understand the history of the Fourth of July and recognize that it is NOT just a holiday to kick off the summer. Knowledge of our history is what will keep the Fourth of July near and dear to the hearts of all Americans.
Your company should display a flag on the 4th of July. If you need a flag, you can order one from the VFW Store at www.vfwstore.org.
In addition to the Fourth of July, the 27th of July is the anniversary of the end of the Korean War, frequently referred to as the “Forgotten War”. The 1950-53 conflict cost America 33,651 killed in action and 103,284 wounded. More than 1.5 million American men and women fought in Korea. Here at VetJobs, our prayers and thoughts go out to the Korean War veterans and their extended families.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
On the economic front, the unemployment rate in May continued to rise, increasing from 8.9 to 9.4 percent. Steep job losses continued in manufacturing, while declines moderated in construction and several service-providing industries.
But it is not just all bad news. The health care industry added 24,000 jobs in May. And the general consensus by economists seems to be that the economy in general and employment specifically are getting worse but at a slower rate. Many economists now say we have passed the bottom and are on the way back up, but it will be a slow and lengthy recovery.
Housing starts bounced back with a vengeance in May, rising 17.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 532,000 after plunging 12.9% in April to a postwar low according to the Commerce Department. The surprising increase was led by a 62% gain in new construction of multifamily dwellings. Starts of single-family homes rose 7.5% to a 401,000 rate, the highest since November. Other data shows the hiring rate, while low, remains unchanged at 3.1% percent with 4,099,000 new hires reported in April.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Finally, I am proud to announce that on June 6, VetJobs signed a mutual support agreement with The Military Order of the Purple Heart (MOPH). Their logo is on the site in the VSO endorsement and alliance pages. MOPH joins the Veterans of Foreign Wars (www.vfw.org – VFW is the sponsor of VetJobs), the Vietnam Veterans of America (www.vva.org), the Naval Reserve Association (www.navy-reserve.org), the Veterans of Modern Warfare (www.vmwusa.org), the Student Veterans of America (www.studentveterans.org) and Hope4Heroes (www.hope4heroes.org) in supporting VetJobs mission of providing jobs for transitioning military, veterans and their family members. The various veteran service organization endorsements assist VetJobs in its reach into the veteran market place, giving your jobs exposure better than any other military related site!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Have a great 4th of July holiday and please remember the real reason America celebrates this day!
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
As always, if there is anything we at VetJobs can do for you, please do not hesitate to call or email. Feel free to share the Early Eagle with other employers!
And remember, Freedom Is Never Free – Support Our Armed Forces and Veterans!
Best regards,
Ted Daywalt
President
/—July Early Eagle sponsor is WEDDLE’s—-\
Completely updated for today’s economic challenges, these books are the Gold Standard of guides to the best online resources for job seekers, career activists and human resource professionals.
The guides include:
- WEDDLE’s 2009/10 Guide to Employment Sites on the Internet, called the Zagat of the online employment industry by the American Staffing Association. It lists our picks for the Top 100 job boards and the Best & the Rest-a directory of 10,000+ sites organized by career field, industry and geographic location.
- WEDDLE’s 2009/10 Guide to Association Web Sites, your roadmap to the “hidden talent market” online. It lists 3,000+ professional and technical associations; organizes them by career field, industry and location; and describes their job search and networking resources online.
Although these books won’t be available on Amazon or in bookstores for 4-6 weeks, you can get them right now by visiting WEDDLE’s online bookstore at www.weddles.com or call our customer service team at 317.598.9768 today.
\—–Please visit your July Early Eagle sponsor WEDDLE’s —-/
2. Supreme Court Says “Strong Basis” Needed in Disparate Impact Cases
The U.S. Supreme Court today employers some guidance on the use of assessment tests, saying the results of these tests can not be ignored simply because they have an adverse impact on a protected group. Ruling 5-4 in the case of Ricci v. DeStefano, the court’s majority said just because a disproportionate share of whites pass a test does not make the test discriminatory. Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy said invalidating test results because of the statistical racial outcome, “… is impermissible under Title VII unless the employer can demonstrate a strong basis in evidence that, had it not taken the action, it would have been liable under the disparate-impact statute.”
Employment lawyers reacted with caution, saying the 92-page decision, including a dissent by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, will take time to digest. Their initial impression, however, is that the court appears to have tempered if not invalidated the 80% rule of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. That rule states that the selection of a group at less than 80 percent of the group with the highest rate will be considered by the EEOC as evidence of discrimination. However, the Supreme Court ruled statistics are not enough to show disparate impact.
/—July Early Eagle sponsor is TECHEXPO Top Secret—-\
TECHEXPO Top Secret’s next job fairs are:
7/21, TECHEXPO Top Secret Career Fair, BWI Marriott, 1743 West Nursery Road, Baltimore, MD, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
7/28, TECHEXPO Top Secret Job Fair, Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City, 1250 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
TECHEXPO Top Secret job fairs bring you face to face with security-cleared professionals. For 2009 event schedule, contact Nancy Mathew 212-655-4505 x225 or NMathew@TechExpoUSA.com. http://www.TechExpoUSA.com
\—–Please visit your July Early Eagle sponsor TECHEXPO Top Secret —-/
3. IRS Offers Tax Credit Guidance to Businesses Hiring Unemployed Veterans and Certain Youth
Businesses planning to claim the newly-expanded work opportunity tax credit (WOTC) for eligible unemployed veterans and unskilled younger workers hired during the first part of 2009 have until Aug. 17 to request the certification required for these workers, according to the Internal Revenue Service.
Newly-revised Form 8850 (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8850.pdf), is now available and is used by employers to request certification from their state workforce agency. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, enacted in February, added unemployed veterans returning to civilian life and “disconnected youth” to the list of groups covered by the credit. Though eligible unemployed veterans and disconnected youth who begin work anytime during 2009 or 2010 may qualify a business for the credit, certification by the state workforce agency is required.
In general, an unemployed veteran is a person discharged or released from the military during the five years preceding the hiring date who received unemployment benefits for at least four weeks during the one-year period ending on the hiring date. A “disconnected youth” is a person age 16 to 24 on the hiring date who has not been regularly employed or attending school and who meets other requirements.
The WOTC offers tax savings to businesses that hire workers belonging to any of 12 targeted groups, including unemployed veterans and disconnected youth. The other 10 include people ages 18 to 39 living in designated communities in 43 states and the District of Columbia, Hurricane Katrina employees, recipients of various types of public assistance, and certain veterans, summer youth workers and ex-felons. The instructions for Form 8850 detail the requirements for each of these groups.
Normally, a business must file Form 8850 with the state workforce agency within 28 days after the eligible worker begins work. But under a special rule, businesses have until Aug. 17, 2009, to file this form for unemployed veterans and disconnected youth who begin work on or after Jan. 1, 2009 and before July 17, 2009. Notice 2009-28 (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-09-28.pdf), posted at www.IRS.gov, and the instructions for Form 8850 provide details on this special rule.
4. DOL Increasing Auditing Staff
Whether you are a large or small company; government contractor or not; you are impacted by one of the divisions within the Department of Labor, Employment Standards Division. For this compliance update, we are only addressing the Wage and Hour Division and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Division.
A requested increase of $35 million will enable the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) to strengthen its enforcement of low-wage and vulnerable workers. If DOL gets its way, it will be able to increase its staff by 288 full time employees, most of whom will be investigators and inspectors. The additional staff will enable the program to conduct more targeted investigations, provide additional compliance assistance, and ensure that cases effectively maximize compliance on behalf of the greatest number of workers.
During Fiscal Year 2008, WHD employed 731 investigators who completed 28,200 compliance actions and 1,790 compliance assistance events. WHD collected more than $185,200,000 in back wages for more than 228,000 workers nationwide on cases concluded in Fiscal Year 2008.
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) enforces equal employment, affirmative action, and non-discrimination among federal contractors. A requested increase of $23.6 million, including an additional 213 full-time employees, will be directed toward strengthening the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs’ overall enforcement efforts. The additional staff will be scattered among regions and will be front-line investigators. The staffing request for OFCCP for Fiscal Year 2010 is 798 full time employees compared to 585 full time employees in Fiscal Year 2009. A significant percentage of the budget will support enforcement and outreach efforts related to compensation. OFCCP will place additional emphasis on outreach and training, as well as improving the various approaches and investigative techniques used to evaluate compensation. The budget request also includes $2 million to develop a new case management system. The budget increases demonstrate the government’s commitment to the monitoring and compliance of equal opportunity and affirmative action provisions of federal contracts. Bottom Line: More money means more resources to conduct inspections, investigations and audits.
5. Compliance Update – Department of Labor Administrative Review Board
In the ruling of Office of Federal Contracts Compliance Programs (OFCCP) v. UPMC Braddock, ARB Case No. 08-048 (May 29, 2009), a Department of Labor Administration Review Board (ARB) issued a ruling that hospitals contracting with a Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) to provide medical services to federal employees are to be considered “subcontractors” even when the subcontract does not have written EEO and Affirmative Action provisions.
The three University of Pittsburgh Medical Center hospitals were contracted providers for a HMO participating in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). They contracted with UPMC Health Plan to provide medical services for individuals insured by the Health Plan. Even though none of the three hospitals held a federal contract, UPMC Health plan had one with the Office of Personnel Management to provide medical coverage.
After the hospital received an OFCCP scheduling notice of a compliance review, they argued that they were not subject to the OFCCP requirements since they were never notified by the Health Plan of their federal contractor status or of the Medical Center’s subcontractor obligations.
The hospitals referred to a DOL precedent (OFCCP V. Bridgeport Hospital) that held that hospitals that provide medical coverage through an insurance company’s arrangement with the federal government were not federal subcontractors because the medical coverage was not necessary to the performance of the insurance company’s direct federal contractor, which was to provide insurance, not medical services, to federal employees. The ARB distinguished this case from Bridgeport Hospital by looking at the underlying contract. In Bridgeport, the prime contractor, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Connecticut had a contract with OPM to provide health insurance to federal employees. In the UPMC case, the prime contract was to provide medical services to federal employees.
Both the Administrative Law Judge and ARB found that such clauses were incorporated into the hospital’s contract by operation of law and therefore the hospitals were bound by them. Additionally, even though the UPMC’s contract with the OPM specifically excluded “providers of direct medical services and supplies” from its definition of “subcontractor,” the ARB found that parties to a contract cannot agree to eliminate compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws.
EMPLOYER IMPACT: This decision reinforces that employers cannot rely on contract language to insulate the organization from OFCCP requirements. Employers should examine their customer/vendor agreements and contractual relationships to determine if the goods and services being provided create federal subcontractor status even if the contract language is silent on this topic.
6. National Veterans’ Training Institute (NVTI)
For nearly 23 years, a one-of-a-kind institute that develops and enhances the skills and knowledge of the country’s veterans’ employment and training personnel has operated in Denver, Colorado. The institute, known as the National Veterans’ Training Institute (NVTI), aims to help disabled veterans outreach program (DVOP) service professionals and local veterans employment representatives (LVER) build upon their knowledge base that will in turn, enable them to better serve our nation’s veterans as they seek jobs and training. Skills provided in the training include resume building skills, interview techniques, how to market employment services to employers and providing case management to the hard-to-place veteran clients. While NVTI does not provide services directly to veterans, they do offer training to veterans representatives to assist their veteran clients in becoming gainfully employed. To date 70,000+ veterans’ employment and training professionals have attended NVTI training. Training has been held in Denver, CO, at regional sites throughout the U.S. and at military bases abroad.
While only federal DOL staff are eligible for NVTI training, the Institute has developed e-learning courses that benefit NVTI participants, as well as other users. One of the most beneficial and relevant e-learning courses developed by NVTI is the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) basic on-line course, USERRA 101, found at www.nvti.cudenver.edu/Userra101 This free interactive course goes through several examples of some tricky employment and reemployment issues which allow the learner to gain basic knowledge about USERRA. It is available to anyone who is affected by service members who need to be called away from their employment to serve their country and provides them guidance, information and resources in creating a positive relationship between the service member and their employer. A follow-up course to USERRA 101 has also been created, USERRA 102, which is available at www.nvti.cudenver.edu/Userra102. Employers, human resource personnel, lawyers, service members and a wide range of individuals have benefited from these courses.
In addition, NVTI’s staff produced the award winning (New York Film Festival) 5-part Ultimate Job Search for the 21st Century video series. This program comes with an interactive on-line workbook. More information about this outstanding job search program can be found at http://www.nlc.cudenver.edu/UJS
NVTI is a contract program, funded by the Department of Labor, Veterans’ Employment & Training Service (VETS) and is administered by the University of Colorado Denver. For more information about NVTI, please visit www.nvti.cudenver.edu.
7. National Guard and Reserve Mobilized as of June 23, 2009
The total number currently on active duty from the Army National Guard and Army Reserve is 110,364; Navy Reserve, 7,027; Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, 15,645; Marine Corps Reserve, 8,787; and the Coast Guard Reserve, 739. This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been activated to 142,562, including both units and individual augmentees. A cumulative roster of all National Guard and Reserve personnel who are currently activated can be found at http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Jun%202009/d20090623ngr.pdf.
8. Significant Events this Month in Military History
1775 – George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, MA. (American Revolutionary War).
1814 – American force led by GEN Jacob Brown defeated British force led by GEN Phineas Riall at Chippewa River, just north of British Fort Erie (near Niagara Falls, NY). A gray-uniformed Brigade led by young American BG Winfield Scott drove the British back. Scott’s men wore gray because Army contractors had run out of blue cloth. To this day, West Point cadets wear gray to commemorate this victory (War of 1812).
1863 – Confederate forces under GEN Robert E. Lee, defeated after three days of fighting at the battle of Gettysburg, PA, began their withdrawal to the South (American Civil War).
1898 – American naval victory over the Spanish at Santiago, Cuba (Spanish-American War).
1907 – Founding of the Aeronautical Division of the US Army Signal Office; the forerunner of the US Army Air Force and later the U.S. Air Force
1914 – World War I began
1915 – U.S. Marines landed in Haiti following the assassination of the Haitian president Vilbrun Guillaume. The Marines remained as occupation forces for nine years.
1918 – Beginning of the Second Battle of the Marne in Northern France between German forces on one side and French, American, British, and Italian troops on the other side. The battle ended on 4 August (World War I).
1926 – U.S. Army Air Corps established.
1943 – The U.S. Army’s Fourth Division, part of General Omar Bradley’s II Corps, captured San Stefano in Sicily (World War II).
1944 – The island of Saipan in the Marianas (Western Pacific) fell to U.S. troops following their defeat of Japanese defenders (World War II). Napalm was used for the first time during the American invasion of Tinian in the Marianas.
1950 – General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was named commander of all UN forces in Korea (Korean Conflict).
1953 – The Korean War ended.
1970 – Siege of Fire Base Ripcord began (Vietnam War)
1973 – Congress refuses to extend the military draft law. The military draft expired automatically on July 1, 1973.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
VetJobs is exclusively sponsored and partially owned by the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States (www.vfw.org) and endorsed by the Vietnam Veterans of America (www.vva.org), the Naval Reserve Association (www.navy-reserve.org), the Veterans of Modern Warfare (www.vmwusa.org), the Student Veterans of America (www.studentveterans.org), the Military Order of the Purple Heart (www.purpleheart.org) and Hope4Heroes (www.hope4heroes.org).
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
You were opted-in when you became a paid employer member, were referred to VetJobs or were part of an organization which opted-in to VetJobs.
To REMOVE or CHANGE your subscribed address, click here:
http://mh.databack.com/c.php?L=earlyeagle&E=#email#
VetJobs
P. O. Box 71445
Marietta, GA 30007-1445
877-Vet-Jobs (877-838-5627)
770-993-5117 Office
770.993.2875 Fax
Veterans make the best employees!
Freedom Is Never Free – Support Our Armed Forces and Veterans!
VetJobs is an appropriate employment service delivery system for EEOC, VEVRAA/JVA and OFCCP compliance support!
Seven year recipient of AIRS Top Recruiting Site
Six year recipient of WEDDLE’s User’s Choice Award
Four year recipient of Workforce Management Top 10 Recruiting Site
Only military job board selected by Reader’s Digest
VetJobs is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business