Dive Brief:

• The NLRB's approved "blacklisting" rule aimed at barring businesses who break labor laws from working for the federal government could arrive any day, according to SHRM.
• Way back in May 2015, the Labor Dept.'s U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued proposed guidance to implement an executive order President Barack Obama signed on July 31, 2014. The order's intent was to keep companies with frequent, multiple labor law violations from receiving federal contracts, in essence a "blacklist."
• Linda Jackson, an attorney with Littler in Washington, D.C, told SHRM that she expects the blacklisting rule to be published sometime this month, especially because those final rules are often sped up in an election year

Dive Insight:

Jackson adds that whether the final rule is effective immediately or phased in over a year, the "NLRB certainly appears to be revamping its existing case management platform to better track employer violations in preparation for its implementation."

So what's the bottom line for federal contractors? Be prepared. While the rule may be challenged in court, government contracts are at risk for noncompliance. Jackson suggests contractors examine their own compliance-driven case-management system, and develop internal mechanisms for determining and providing the required information to the government, including potentially helpful information that might be needed as part of a defense.