U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission| Office of Minority and Women Inclusion | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

August 13, 2020

SEC CONTRACT REQUIREMENT TO 

PROMOTE WORKFORCE DIVERSITY 

AND INCLUSION
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission| Office of Minority and Women Inclusion | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

The Securities and Exchange Commission, as a 

matter of policy, disclaims responsibility for any 

private publication or statement by any of its 

employees. Therefore, the views expressed 

today are our own, and do not necessarily reflect 

the views of the Commission or the other 

members of the staff of the Commission.

Disclaimer
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Agenda

 Overview of Contract Standard – SEC 6020.00 

Contractor Workforce Inclusion 

 OMWI Procedures to Determine Contractor 

Compliance 

 Actions Demonstrating Good Faith Efforts

 Q&A

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

OVERVIEW OF CONTRACT 

STANDARD PROVISIONS
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SEC 6020.00 Contractor Workforce Inclusion

 Solicitations and contracts for services in the amount of 

$100,000 or more

 Subcontracts for services in the amount of $100,000 or 

more awarded under the prime contract

 Exempted: contracts for services for work to be performed 

outside the United States by employees not recruited within the 

United States

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Origin of the Contract Standard

 Section 342(c)(2) and (3) of Dodd Frank Act provides:

 Written statement that a contractor shall ensure 

fair inclusion of minorities and women

 OMWI Director determination regarding

contractor good faith efforts to ensure the 

inclusion of minorities and women in its workforce

 Appropriate action by Agency Administrator if

contractor fails to make good faith efforts 

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Contract Standard Requirements

Contractor agrees to:

 Equal opportunity in employment and contracting

 Fair inclusion of minorities and women in its workforce

 Insert the Contract Standard in covered subcontracts 

 Provide documentation demonstrating good faith efforts, 

upon the request of the OMWI Director

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Good Faith Efforts Defined

 Includes actions by the contractor (or subcontractor) to:

• Identify and remove barriers to minority and women 

employment and expand employment opportunities for 

minorities and women within its workforce

 Examples:

• Recruiting to ensure diverse applicant pools 

• Job-related training

• Other activity leading to barrier removal

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Documentation Re: Good Faith Efforts

Documentation requested by OMWI Director to demonstrate good 

faith efforts may include:

a. Workforce demographic data similar to EEO-1 Report 

b. List of covered subcontract awards for services

c. Plan for ensuring the workforce inclusion of minorities and 

women 

d. Subcontractor workforce data and workforce inclusion plan

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Other Key Provisions of Contract Standard

Failure to demonstrate good faith efforts may result in:

o Termination of the contract for default

o Other contractual remedies

o Referral to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance 

Programs (OFCCP) 

Compliance with Contract Standard does not equal 

compliance with Executive Order 11246

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Determining Contractor Compliance: 

OMWI Good Faith Effort Reviews
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Exclusions from GFE Review

 Contractor has fewer than 50 employees

 OMWI reviewed within past two years

 Contracts for services excluded from the FAR 

definition of “service contract”

 Contract with foreign company with no office or 

operations in the U.S. 

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

“Good Faith Effort (GFE) Review” – post-award review to determine 

compliance with Contract Standard

Document Request Letter asks contractor to submit documentation 

specified in the Contract Standard within 10 business days:

a. Workforce demographic data 

b. List of covered subcontracts for services 

c. Plan for ensuring workforce inclusion of minorities and 

women 

d. Workforce demographic data and workforce inclusion plan for 

covered subcontractors with 50 or more employees

OMWI Good Faith Effort Review

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a. Workforce Data

• No specific format required for submitting the workforce 

demographic information

• Most recent EEO-1 Report may be submitted

• Multi-establishment contractors should submit the 

Consolidated EEO-1 Report, which includes all employees

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

• “Covered” subcontracts are subcontract awards for services 

with a dollar value of $100,000 or more under the SEC 

contract. 

• For each covered subcontract award, provide:

o Dollar amount

o Date of award

o Subcontractor’s race, ethnicity, and/or gender ownership 

status. 

b. List of Covered Subcontracts

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• No specific requirements for a plan for fair inclusion of 

minorities and women in a contractor’s workforce

• No requirement to produce a particular document

• May submit AAPs required under regulations implementing 

Executive Order 11246 

• May submit plan specifically developed for promoting diversity 

and inclusion in workforce 

c. Contractor’s Plan for Workforce 

Inclusion of Minorities and Women

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

AAP Actions Demonstrating 

Good Faith Efforts 

EO 11246 AAPs typically describe actions demonstrating good faith 

efforts, including, but not limited to: 

 Workforce data analyses to determine whether workforce utilization of 

minorities and women in contractor defined job groups reflects their 

availability in the relevant labor market

 Action oriented programs to address any identified problem areas in 

utilization of minorities and women 

 Recruitment focused on minorities and/or women

 Participation at job fairs attracting minorities and women 

 Training on eliminating bias in recruitment, hiring, personnel actions 

and other activities

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Prime contractors are responsible for obtaining and submitting 

workforce data and workforce inclusion plan for each covered 

subcontractor that has 50 or more employees

d. Subcontractor Workforce Data and 

Workforce Inclusion Plan

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Diversity and Inclusion Plans

Actions described in D&I plans submitted for 

review:

 Added Corporate D&I function

 Developed apprentice program for underserved 

groups 

 Established leadership development programs for 

women and minorities

 Supported employee business resource groups

 Adopted D&I metrics 

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U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission | Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Contract Standard Reviews

Email: ContractStandardReviews@sec.gov

SEC Point of Contact

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