Photo of Laura A. Mitchell

Laura Mitchell is a principal in the Denver office of Jackson Lewis P.C. and leads the firm’s Workplace Analytics and Preventive Strategies Pay Equity subgroup. She partners with employers to evaluate, develop and implement policies and practices that ensure workplace fairness while mitigating legal risk. Laura is a guiding force in the firm’s most specialized and technical practice areas where she leverages an analytics-focused approach to partner with her clients in building legally compliant programs around which they can anchor their workplaces achieving productivity and stability.

Laura understands that creating a competitive advantage for employers in today’s workplace involves using a data-driven approach to counsel companies on the development of proactive and equitable non-discriminatory practices in hiring, promotions, separations and pay—and where advancements in technology can create both opportunities for efficiencies and risk that can be measured. Committed to putting her clients’ organizational goals first and foremost while balancing legal risk, Laura views herself as an extension of her clients’ team, responsible for providing proactive guidance and engaging in transparent, ongoing communication. Staying the course with employers across their organizational journey while balancing legal compliance obligations throughout their employees’ lifecycle ensures Laura’s position as a go-to resource.

Laura works with companies across all industries—both new and well-established multi-national organizations of all sizes—to realize the combined vision of legal compliance, increased productivity and economic growth enhanced by a focus on pay equity.  As part of the pay equity journey, she advises employers on the evolving pay transparency landscape, working to align compliant practices with the practical realities of the business world.

Laura partners closely with government contractors to understand, implement and demonstrate compliance with their EEO regulatory and compliance obligations. She also works closely with non-government contractor clients to conduct risk assessments of their programs, policies, and training to align with federal and state anti-discrimination requirements.

Laura is the editor and a principal contributor of the GovCon Employment Exchange blog and presents on pay equity and government contractor obligations. To round out her days, Laura enjoys spending time with her family and friends attending sports events, working out, riding her bike, playing pickleball and taking in Colorado’s incomparable sunsets.

This is the third of our series of blog posts on the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) July 1 request for comments on OFCCP’s updated proposed scheduling letters.  For background, OFCCP first proposed changes to its existing compliance check, establishment review, and focused review scheduling letters in April, and received comments from

On schedule, EEOC has opened the portal for filing 2017 and 2018 EEO-1 Component 2 reports.

Here’s the catch, however:  According to updates on the Component 2 website, the reporting portal is “operational and available for viewing by the public,” however, as it previously advised, batch reporting will not be available until mid-August.

This is the second blog post in our series discussing the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB’s) request for further comments on OFCCP’s proposed scheduling letters and itemized listings, which were first published in April.

In our April post on the proposed changes to the then newly proposed establishment review scheduling letter and itemized listing,

As July 15th draws closer, EEOC and NORC are ramping up for opening of the EEO-1 Component 2 Pay Data reporting portal.

As part of these efforts, they are consistently providing new information on the reporting obligation.  Most recently, the reporting website has been updated to include assurances from NORC on data system security

In April, OFCCP proposed four new scheduling letters – one each for its establishment reviews, compliance checks, and separate but related letters for its focused reviews on Section 503 (disability) and VEVRAA (veteran) compliance. These proposed letters, if approved, would have significantly increased the burden of the submission required in the event of

As we previously reported, on July 2, EEOC updated the its newly created website with long-awaited materials regarding the obligation of employers with 100 or more employees to submit pay data and hours worked data as part of the annual EEO-1 reporting obligations.

We anticipated EEOC would not change much relative to the materials

On Friday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published notice it would begin reviewing the proposed changes to OFCCP’s Supply and Service scheduling letters, including the Section 503 and VEVRAA Focused Reviews and Compliance Check letters. OMB is seeking public comments until July 29, 2019 to aid in its review.  Under the Paperwork Reduction

In its most recent status update, filed with the court as ordered by Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, EEOC is reporting it and NORC are on schedule to open the EEO-1 Component 2 pay data reporting tool on July 15, 2019.

The status report explained that a Computer-assisted Web Interview (CAWI) data collection instrument will be available on July 15, 2019. Importantly, the report noted that NORC is working on a data file upload function and validation process which is expected to be available as an additional data collection method no later than August 15, 2019.Continue Reading EEOC On Schedule to Open Component 2 Reporting July 15, 2019