On January 9, 2017, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed Executive Order 162 requiring state agencies and authorities to include a provision in state contracts “requiring contractors to agree to include detailed workforce utilization reports, in addition to the equal employment opportunity information” that is currently required to be included in such reports. The new reports must contain the job title, salary and other data, including the gender, race, and ethnicity of each employee working on the state contract. If the contractor cannot identify the particular workers on the state contract, the report must then contain the job titles and salary data “of each employee in the contractor’s entire workforce.”
Executive Order 162 applies to “all State contracts, agreements, and procurements issued and executed on or after June 1, 2017.” The new reporting requirement applies to both contractors and subcontractors. Contractors and subcontractors will be required to report the information on a quarterly basis for all prime contracts with a value in excess of $25,000. Contractors with contracts of more than $100,000 must report monthly.
The New York State Department of Economic Development will set forth procedure in which the information will be reported. The New York State Department of Labor will analyze the data and make recommendations to eliminate any detected wage disparity.
Upon signing the Order Governor Cuomo stated: “At these stormy times of instability and confusion, New York must serve as a safe harbor for the progressive principles and social justice that made America.”
Executive Order 162 can be found here.
Jose A. Aquino (@JoseAquinoEsq on Twitter) is a special counsel in the New York office of Duane Morris LLP, where he is a member of the Construction Group and of the Duane Morris Cuba Business Group. Mr. Aquino focuses his practice on commercial litigation with a concentration in construction law, mechanics’ lien law and government procurement law. This blog is prepared and published for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s law firm or its individual attorneys.