The Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) April 21 updated its Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) Benchmark Database to reflect a new 7 percent annual national benchmark for federal contractor hiring of protected veterans, which is a slight decrease from the previous 7.2 percent. 

Under final VEVRAA regulations that went into effect in March 2014, federal contractors are allowed to establish a hiring benchmark for veterans based on “the current national percentage of veterans in the workforce,” which was adjusted to 7 percent based on 2014 end-of-year data.

Contractors also can choose to set up an individual benchmark based on a "five-factor method."

• Factor 1: The average percentage of veterans in the civilian labor force for the state where the establishment is located for the previous three years. 
• Factor 2: The number of veterans who participated in the employment service delivery system in the state where the establishment is located over the previous four quarters. 
• Factor 3: The applicant ratio and hiring ratio for the establishment for the previous year. 
• Factor 4: The most recent assessment of the effectiveness of outreach and recruitment efforts. 
• Factor 5: Any other factor, such as the nature of the job openings or the facility’s location that would tend to affect the availability of qualified protected veterans.