Business groups push Obama to rescind executive order

Business groups are pushing President Obama to throw out the executive order (EO) he signed earlier this year to improve workplace conditions for the employees of federal contractors.

In a letter sent Thursday to Labor Secretary Thomas Perez and White House aide Cecilia Muñoz, trade groups said the president exceeded his authority by making regulatory changes that disregard enforcement procedures already in place.

{mosads}“The DOL and the federal agencies have sufficient authority under the Federal Acquisition Regulation to consider contractor compliance with federal labor laws and share relevant information with federal contracting officers or agency suspension and debarment officials,” the groups wrote.

“In the most egregious cases, these authorities include the ability to initiate suspension and debarment proceedings against federal contractors, based upon violations of established business ethics standards, including violations of the laws covered by the E.O.”

The letter was signed by 19 groups, including the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), the Aerospace Industries Association, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the American Trucking Associations and The Coalition for Government Procurement.

Obama’s Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces order was designed to keep companies with shoddy records from receiving federal contracts. It requires companies to disclose labor law violations dating back three years in order to participate in the procurement process.

The trade groups said the order is not only burdensome but that it keeps employers from resolving employee disputes through arbitration when contracts are over $1 million.

“We are also deeply concerned that implementation of the E.O. will create widespread disruptions in the federal procurement process and significantly increase costs for both government and industry,” the letter said. “Given its highly subjective enforcement requirements, the E.O. will inevitably lead to delays in award evaluations, limitations on competition and a greater number of contract award protests.”

ABC Vice President of Government Affairs Geoff Burr said contractors should be held accountable, but in a way that improves and streamlines the federal procurement process.

“ABC, along with other business groups that represent the federal contracting community, remains committed to fighting this order in the courts and in Congress should it not be withdrawn,” he said in a statement.