EEOC Publishes Notice of Intent to Survey Applicants Interested in Federal Jobs for Disability Status

On February 15, 2013, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) published a notice of its intent to change the survey form used to collect demographic information from persons expressing interest in positions with the federal government.  The form would be revised to include questions concerning disabilities that applicants may have.  Currently, the form only includes questions concerning gender, ethnicity, and race.

The proposed revisions to the survey form do NOT affect federal contractors or other private sector employers.  Instead, these proposed revisions are meant to help the federal government determine whether it is meeting its objectives in regard to hiring persons with disabilities for positions with the federal government.  The proposed revisions to the survey form do not simply ask whether an individual is a person with a disability, but instead ask specific questions about particular types of disabilities as well as questions concerning particular conditions an applicant may have.

While the proposed revisions to the survey form do not apply to private sector employers, these revisions are consistent with the federal government's desire to provide greater access to employment for persons with disabilities.  The requirement to survey applicants for disability status is one part of the proposed regulations issued by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) in December of 2011.  These proposed regulations have not been finalized by OFCCP, and concerns have been raised about a number of the changes found in the proposed regulations including this requirement to survey applicants concerning disability.  EEOC currently suggests that no disability survey should be conducted for applicants until the post-offer stage of the employment process.  It is possible that the proposed survey released on February 15 is an indication that EEOC may be changing its position in this regard.

The EEOC's notice can be found at the federal government's website showing all proposed regulations or at the Federal Register website.  OFCCP's proposed revisions to its regulations regarding disability can be found on the documents page of the HR Analytical Services website.