OFCCP Begins to Enforce “Beck Notice” Requirement

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) of the Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced that it would begin monitoring federal contractors and subcontractors for compliance with Executive Order 13201 (EO 13201) which was signed by President Bush in 2001. The Executive Order requires contractors and subcontractors to post an employee notice referred to as a “Beck notice” and also to include language in its subcontracts notifying subcontractors of their obligation to post this notice. The intent of the Beck notice is to inform employees of their rights under Federal labor law regarding union membership and use of union dues; namely, that employees may not be required to join a union or maintain a union membership in order to retain their jobs. Also, those employees who are subject to a union security clause and choose not to be union members may object to the purposes for which mandatory union dues are used.