U.S. Agencies Propose Guidance on Electronic Job Applicants

By Linda M. Doyle and Stephen D. Erf

On March 4, 2004, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office of Personnel Management proposed a long-awaited guidance defining a job applicant for whom employers must collect demographic data in the context of internet and e-mail hiring. The guidance is now subject to a 60-day comment period. Issued in question and answer form, the guidance states that for an individual to be an applicant in the context of internet and related electronic technologies the employer must have acted to fill a particular position; the individual must have followed the employer’s standard procedures for submitting applications; and the individual must have indicated an interest in the particular position. The agencies provided a few examples to show how they plan to interpret these elements in certain contexts, including online