There are thousands of government contractors who hold Service Contract Act contracts, yet so many of them are confused about the requirements. It’s understandable; the requirement guidelines are complicated and difficult to navigate. As an HR consultant with GovCon subject matter expertise, I often interpret the guidelines for many of our federal contracting clients to ensure they are in compliance. Here are a few tips to help clarify some of the most frequent misunderstandings I have discovered over the years consulting on the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act of 1965, now known as the Service Contract Labor Standards.

As a government contractor with 50 employees and $50,000 in government contracts, you are required to have an Affirmative Action Plan (AAP). Much of the information that goes into your AAP is collected from your applicants and employee population by providing them with an invitation to voluntarily self-identify.

I recently worked with a client to conduct an employee engagement survey. The results of the survey indicated that employees felt they were not paid competitively and that the bonus opportunities available to them were not incentivizing. The leadership did not really understand why employees feel this way because they felt they had done all the right things.

You may have heard that the OFCCP is getting ready to send a wave of Corporate Scheduling Announcement Letters(CSAL) to contractors that have been selected for an upcoming compliance review. And the news may be making you very nervous. I remember the first time I received a CSAL and I got so nervous at the thought of an audit. But when I realized that we were doing the right things and were prepared to respond, it really wasn't so bad.

I have handled many employee relations issues in my time as an HR professional and over the years have said to myself on countless occasions, “gosh, if only the manager had managed the employee, we wouldn't be having these performance discussions right now.” I think, too often, great employees are promoted into manager positions because that seems like the next logical step in that individual’s career path.

I often get asked the question, “How much do salary surveys cost?” and I usually reply with a question of my own, “How much do you think it will cost if you don’t use salary surveys?”