On June 15, 2016, the OFCCP published the 2016 Annual Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) Benchmark on its website. The new hiring benchmark – now at 6.9% – replaces the previous benchmark of 7.0% for protected veterans in Affirmative Action Plans. The benchmark is based on Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data released on March 4, 2016 and is also effective as of the BLS release date.
The OFCCP explained that Federal contractors who have adopted the previous year’s national benchmark of 7.0% after March 4, 2016, but prior to the June 15 announcement, may keep their benchmark at 7.0%. Moving forward, the effective date for the Annual VEVRAA Benchmark will match the date that BLS publishes the data from which the OFCCP calculates the Annual VEVRAA Benchmark – around the beginning of March.
In other words:
- AAPs that begin before March 4, 2016 should use the previous benchmark of 7.0%.
- AAPs that begin on March 4, 2016 or later, and have not yet been completed, should adopt the new 6.9% benchmark.
- AAPs that begin on March 4, 2016 or later, and were completed before June 15, 2016, may use the 7.0% benchmark.
For Federal contractors who choose to calculate their own hiring benchmark using the OFCCP’s five-factor method, national and state information has also been updated in the VEVRAA Benchmark Database located at https://ofccp.dol-esa.gov/errd/VEVRAA.jsp.
For more information about VEVRAA requirements, please visit http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/vevraa.htm.