The Government may have stringent standards when it comes to contract oversight of awardees within the federal sector concerning hiring and pay. After all, they have an entire country to watch over.
Government standards concerning contracting practices are called rigorous by some and a set of handcuffs by others. They do keep score but it can play in your favor.
Discrimination is not allowed.
Simply put, you must hire the best person for the job. Passing on candidates or sub-contractors due to prejudices of sex, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, age or disability has potential to end your agreement or at the very least hamper future awards through a negative CPARS rating. Your company may even get investigated. So create and maintain an affirmative action plan and show equal employment opportunity.
That being said, the practice of set-asides carries tremendous potential in narrowing the lens of an awarding officer at the desk inside an ordering facility.
Furthermore, employers on a federal contract must pay their employees a fair wage. Upon services contracts, the DOL sets forth a minimum pay floor which cannot be disturbed but can be exceeded. They oversee the Fair Labor Standards Act and investigate falsified contracts, supporting documentation and certainly take action to ensure that the pay of those working on federal grounds and toward completion of a government project are paid fairly within their field. Its the same in construction and that’s referred to as the Davis-Bacon Act. Ensure that your proposal consists both of a fair hourly wage as well as a competitively built up price-point. Those are two different numbers. One’s bigger than the other.
I can understand that it may seem as if you are completely at the disposal of the awarding officer, but you have some power as well. You control when the project ends. You can end the agreement at any time which is referred to as a termination for convenience. However, this is usually seen in schedule contracting because if you cannot complete the obligations of a buy then you will get dinged in CPARS. You can also control the line-items that you provide. This may be a great opportunity for a certified teaming arrangement or to sub-contract certain efforts. You can control the pricing. On a buy, you will begin and end a labor project in a state of wholeness in which monies may change hands in accordance with the price of materials. On a schedule contract, you can request pricing and product adjustments according to the economy as well as your business practices. Companies have been known to use contract modifications as leverage from time to time.
In closing it is essential that you understand your role and your rights as a federal awardee. Otherwise, you could destroy a very lucrative potential.
If you think I can help you then email nicholas.s.robertson@outlook.com for your introductory message and free consultation.
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