Federal Contractors Program

From: Employment and Social Development Canada

The Labour Program administers and enforces the Federal Contractors Program (FCP). FCP requires that organizations who do business with the Government of Canada implement employment equity in their workplace. This includes ensuring their workforce is representative of Canada’s labour force with respect to the 4 designated groups under the Employment Equity Act:

women
Indigenous peoples^{Footnote 1}
persons with disabilities
members of visible minorities

Who does the FCP apply to

The FCP applies to organizations that have:

a combined workforce in Canada of 100 or more permanent full-time or permanent part-time employees, and
received an initial federal government goods or services contract valued at $1 million or more (including applicable taxes)

The FCP does not apply to:

private-sector employers under federal jurisdiction
contracts for the purchase or leasing of real property, or
construction or legal service contracts

What are the FCP requirements

To bid on an eligible contract, organizations must enter into an Agreement to Implement Employment Equity (AIEE). The AIEE goes beyond the life of the original contract and is an ongoing obligation.

An organization that receives an eligible contract must meet the following requirements:

collect and maintain workforce information, including representation of the 4 designated groups
conduct a workforce analysis and complete an achievement report
establish short-term and long-term numerical goals and begin actions that will identify and remove employment barriers
make reasonable efforts towards having a workforce that is representative of the 4 designated groups

Role of the Labour Program

As administrator of the FCP, the Labour Program is responsible for:

promoting the importance of employment equity
providing information, tools and guidance and working with organizations to fulfill their obligations
assigning AIEE numbers to new organizations
conducting scheduled compliance assessments
engaging contracting authorities for program evaluation purposes
informing contracting authorities so that ineligible organizations do not receive contracts for goods or services
offering information and advice to government officials regarding the FCP
maintaining the FCP List of Certified Employers on GCpedia^{Footnote 2} for contracting authorities. This list provides the names of organizations and their assigned AIEE numbers
maintaining the FCP Limited Eligibility to Bid list. This list identifies organizations that should not receive future federal goods or services contracts by reason of either:
- being non-compliant following the Labour Program’s compliance assessment, or
- having withdrawn from the FCP

For more information, consult the FCP compliance requirements.

Role of government contracting authorities

The Government of Canada contracting authorities solicit bids and award goods and services contracts. Prior to awarding any eligible contract, contracting authorities are responsible for ensuring that organizations:

receive information about the FCP, and
commit to implement employment equity

Contracting authorities must also ensure that ineligible organizations are not awarded any contract, standing offer or supply arrangement.

Specifically, the first task of contracting authorities is to verify the eligibility of the contract to be awarded (value and type of goods and services).

If the contract is:

for goods or services valued at $1 million or more (including applicable taxes)
not for the purchase or leasing of real property
not for construction, and
not for legal services, then the contracting authorities must:
- provide general information about the FCP (application, requirements and compliance assessments) to bidders or potential suppliers
- request and obtain a signed and fully completed Agreement to Implement Employment Equity (LAB1168) (AIEE) form or obtain the current AIEE number issued by the Labour Program, as part of the bidding or contracting package. The AIEE must be signed by an authorized executive of the organization
- verify the accuracy of the AIEE number by comparing it with the number listed in the FCP List of Certified Employers on GCpedia^{Footnote 2}
- clarify with the organization if the AIEE number cited does not match the number on file. The Labour Program will resolve any issues with the AIEE, as required
- only award the contract to organizations who have submitted a signed and fully completed AIEE with their bidding or contracting package, or have a valid AIEE number
- obtain approval from senior management before awarding the contract to an ineligible organization who can solely perform the work. The contracting authority must:
  - ensure the contractor commits to reinstatement under the FCP, and
  - contact Employment Equity accordingly
- provide to the Labour Program a regular report (for example, monthly, quarterly, annually) on eligible contracts awarded throughout the year, along with copies of the associated signed and fully completed AIEE. The report must include the following information:
  - contract number
  - contract value
  - contract award date
  - commodity description
  - organization’s business number that is registered with the Canada Revenue Agency
  - organization’s legal name
  - organization’s full business address
  - organization’s business telephone number
  - organization’s email address
  - organization’s contact name
  - organization’s number of employees
  - valid AIEE number, if applicable, and
  - additional information upon request

If the contract is for:

goods or services valued under $1 million (including applicable taxes)
the purchase or leasing of real property
construction, or
legal services, then the contracting authorities must only award the contract to organizations who are not on the FCP Limited Eligibility to Bid List.

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Date modified:: 2024-04-23

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