Companion Guide to Video August 2012

www.fhwa.dot.gov/federal-aidessentials

Civil Rights

Non-discrimination Requirements 

on Construction Contracts

One of your responsibilities as a local public 

agency, or LPA, is to ensure that prime 

contractors and their subcontractors comply with 

all nondiscrimination requirements that apply to 

your federally funded construction contract. 

Nondiscrimination is the prevention of unequal 

treatment toward a person because of race, 

religion, sex, color, national origin, age, or 

disability. Equal employment opportunity, or 

EEO, and affirmative action are requirements on 

federally funded construction contracts that are 

designed to prevent discrimination. Equal 

employment opportunity is treating all persons 

the same and providing the same opportunities 

to everyone. Affirmative action is the series of 

steps taken to prevent and correct 

discrimination. 

The Federal nondiscrimination requirements 

make it illegal for federal-aid construction 

contractors to discriminate in their employment 

practices or against individuals for the purposes 

of employment. As you prepare the contract 

documents for a federal-aid construction project,

make sure you understand that Form FHWA1273 must be included in every contract and 

subcontract associated with the project.

Form FHWA-1273 lists several Federal 

requirements to be included in federal-aid 

contracts. Included in this form are the 

mandated nondiscrimination provisions that 

apply to all contracts or subcontracts of $10,000

or more. Therefore, when your contractor signs 

the project contract, the nondiscrimination 

provisions of the Form FHWA-1273 become the 

contractors equal employment opportunity and 

affirmative action standards. In addition, the 

contractor must insert these same 

nondiscrimination provisions in any subcontract 

associated with the project. 

During project construction, you, as the local 

public agency, or LPA, should monitor prime 

contractors and subcontractors to confirm 

compliance with all EEO and affirmative action 

standards identified in their contracts. 

Federal nondiscrimination requirements must be enforced on 

all Federal aid construction contracts
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

Among the many requirements found in the 

Form FHWA-1273 that you will monitor are the 

required actions of contractors and their 

subcontractors. These include: 

• Accepting the EEO policy statement as 

the companies operating policy for its 

employees and applicants, 

Disseminating the EEO policy 

throughout the workforce and placing 

the required posters in areas readily 

accessible to employees and applicants, 

• Appointing an EEO officer who is 

responsible for actively administering 

their EEO program, 

• Reviewing and monitoring all personnel 

actions to ensure EEO and affirmative 

action in employment practices such as 

recruitment, hires, promotions, and 

training, 

• Making full use of training programs to 

increase the skills of minorities and 

women employees and applicants for 

employment, 

• Promptly investigating alleged 

discrimination complaints and 

attempting to resolve them, 

• Ensuring nondiscrimination in the 

selection and retention of 

subcontractors and ensure 

disadvantaged business enterprises 

have equal opportunity to compete for 

and perform subcontracts, and 

• Maintaining records and reports 

documenting the contractor’s progress 

and efforts to comply with the EEO 

requirements. 

Additionally, your monitoring responsibilities 

include confirming that prime contractors are 

ensuring that all subcontractors comply with 

these requirements. While you are primarily 

responsible for ensuring compliance by your 

contractors, your Federal-aid project may be 

subject to contract compliance reviews by the 

State department of transportation, the Federal 

Highway Administration, or the Department of 

Labor: Office of Federal Contract Compliance 

Programs. 

Nondiscrimination provisions 

are as important as all other 

contract provisions. To protect 

applicants and employees 

from being discriminated 

against and ensure you 

receive Federal funds for your 

project, monitor your 

contractors to ensure they 

comply with these 

requirements. For additional 

guidance to ensure nondiscrimination on 

Federal-aid highway projects, contact your State 

department of transportation. 
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

The content of this 

document is not a 

substitute for 

information obtained 

from State departments 

of transportation, 

appropriate FHWA 

Division Offices, and 

applicable laws. 

Scenarios have been 

simplified for emphasis 

and do not necessarily 

reflect the actual range of 

requirements applicable 

to the scenario or this 

topic. This document

was created under 

contract number

DTFH63-11-F-00066 by 

the Federal Highway 

Administration, U.S. 

Department of 

Transportation, and is 

offered to the public to 

heighten and focus 

awareness of Federal-aid 

requirements within the 

local public agencies 

community and 

reinforces the 

importance of these 

necessary policies, 

procedures, and 

practices.

This companion resource 

is the script content for 

the video production of 

the same name. 

Additional Resources

• Regulations on the contractor compliance program and FHWA 1273

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/civilrights/programs/cc.htm

• Information on the requirements of FHWA 1273

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/contracts/core02.cfm#s2A02

• Regulation for required contract provisions

http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi/t/text/textidx?c=ecfr&sid=6e2ccbb66576498220877d55e8e71e7a&rgn=div5&view

=text&node=23:1.0.1.7.22&idno=23

• Federal regulations on specific EEO contract requirements

http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi/t/text/textidx?c=ecfr&sid=d03f9881e68119e0a2a4edab40c0280a&rgn=div5&view=

text&node=23:1.0.1.3.8&idno=23