OFF47 Disability Pilot Program RFI 26Sept2018.dotx

September 26, 2018

Request for Information (RFI) Setting Employment Goals for Persons with Disabilities under Statewide Contract OFF47, Office Supplies, Recycled Paper and Envelopes

Background: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts through the Operational Services Division (OSD) has announced its intent to post a solicitation for Statewide Contract OFF47, Office Supplies, Recycled Paper and Envelopes. The new contract will replace the current contract OFF36, Office Supplies, Recycled Paper and Envelopes.

With the passage of Section 88 of the Fiscal Year 2019 Budget, OSD’s Supplier Diversity Office has been directed to implement the SDO Disability Pilot Program “with a utilization, contract-based goal of 7 per cent for the inclusion of qualified individuals with disabilities in any state contract for 3 services… The pilot program shall promote the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities and assist state contractors in evaluating and measuring levels of success in the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities. The utilization goal shall not be used as a quota, limit or restriction on the employment of individuals with disabilities.” See Appendix A for the full text of the section. See also 41 CFR 60-741.2 for the definition of a qualified individual.

It is the intent of the Operational Services Division to include Statewide Contract OFF47 in the pilot. While no additional information is available about the new procurement, the Strategic Sourcing Services Team (SSST) is seeking information about practices related to Persons with Disabilities in place within all potential bidder companies and their respective industries in general.

This RFI is for the team’s information only; it will not result in any contracts being awarded. Responding or not responding to this RFI will not influence the evaluation of a company’s response to the full procurement. The team reserves the right to contact respondents with follow up questions by email or phone, or to request in-person follow up meetings limited in scope to the subject matter of this RFI. These communications, if any, will only take place before the posting of the final RFR for Statewide Contract OFF47.

Instructions:

Please type in your responses for each question in Sections A, B and C below and provide as much detail as you see appropriate in the body of the document. Submit your response by email as an attachment to Dmitriy Nikolayev, Director, Programs and Reporting, OSD’s Supplier Diversity Office at: Dmitriy.Nikolayev@mass.gov naming your file attachment as: OFF47_RFI_CompanyName.

Deadline: Thursday, October 4, 2018, 3 P.M.

A. Company Information Profile:

Company name

Contact name

Street address, city, state, zip

Main phone number

Toll-free phone number

Fax number

Email

Website

B. Request for Information Questions:

1. How many full-time equivalent employees does your company employ? (Choose one) ___ - Fifty or more FTEs ___ - Fewer than fifty FTEs

2. If asked, would your company be able to provide to the Commonwealth statistics on the total combined number of FTEs, regardless of disability status, involved in providing services to the Commonwealth (e.g., two staff members each spending 50% of their time providing services under the Contract shall equal one FTE)?

3. Does your company maintain statistics on the number of individuals with disabilities working within the company as a whole and/or within individual business units?

4. Does your company have an voluntary and confidential self-identification process for individuals with disabilities?

5. What other practices, procedures and systems does your company have in place to enable the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities?

C. Tentative Contract Language:

The following is a draft section of the Request for Response (RFR) section related to the Pilot Program:

SDO Disability Pilot Program

a) Background: Section 88 of the Fiscal Year 2019 Budget directs OSD’s Supplier Diversity Office, in consultation with the Massachusetts Office on Disability (MOD), to implement the SDO Disability Pilot Program “with a utilization, contract-based goal of 7 per cent for the inclusion of qualified individuals with disabilities…to promote the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities and assist state contractors in evaluating and measuring levels of success in the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities.” This RFR and contracts resulting from it shall be part of the SDO Disability Pilot Program (Program), and Bidders and Contractors awarded as a result of this RFR will be required to participate in the Program.

b) Program Purpose and Utilization Goal: The purpose of the Program is to assist Contractors in measuring their success in the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities. As part of the Program, Contractors will be required to set, strive to meet and measure progress toward a 7% utilization goal for individuals with disabilities. This goal shall apply:

· For Contractors with 50 or fewer full-time equivalents (FTEs): to the entire workforce of the Contractor;

· For Contractors with more than 50 FTEs: to the direct workforce needs of the Contract.

Failing to meet the Program utilization goal of 7% will not result in a fine, penalty or sanction under the Contract. This utilization goal is not to be used as a quota or a ceiling that limits or restricts the employment of individuals with disabilities.

For the purpose of this Contract, the direct workforce needs shall be defined as the combined staff time involved in providing services to the Commonwealth under the Contract expressed as a number of FTEs (e.g., two staff members each spending 50% of their time providing services under the Contract shall equal one FTE). A qualified individual shall have the same meaning as set forth in 41 C.F.R. 60-741.2.

c) Program Participation Requirements: As part of their Quotes, using the form attached to the RFR, Bidders must provide information on:

· Current utilization percentage of individuals with disabilities via an established voluntary self-identification process (if no process exists, a written commitment to establish one and provide the utilization percentage as part of the below-described Baseline Report);

· Current practices, procedures and systems related to the recruitment, hiring, promotion, retention and employment of individuals with disabilities; and

· Initiatives that the Bidder proposes to implement in order to reach the utilization goal for individuals with disabilities established under the Program.

Within 60 days of Contract award, Contractors must submit a Baseline Report, and no later than June 30th of each year, Contractors must submit a Program Update Report, which must include the following information:

· Updated utilization percentage of Persons with Disabilities based on the Program Goal; and

· Updated information on practices, procedures, systems and initiatives initiated or planned as part of the Contractor’s participation in the Program.

During the life of the Contract, the Commonwealth intends to offer Contractors training, model forms, best practices and other assistance in reaching the Program utilization goal.

d) Program Changes and Termination: During the life of the Contract, the Commonwealth reserves the right to make changes to the Program based on feedback from Contractors and other constituents. Such changes shall be consistent with the intent of the Program and shall be implemented with mutual agreement between the Commonwealth and the Contractors. The Commonwealth reserves the right to terminate the Program and release Contractors from Program Participation Requirements at any point during the life of the Contract.

6. Given the language above, would your company bid on the contract? (Choose one) ___ - Yes, definitely ___ - Yes, likely ___ - Unlikely ___ - Definitely not

7. Please provide any comments on the language above:

Appendix A: SDO Disability Pilot Program

SECTION 88. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the supplier diversity office, in consultation with the Massachusetts office on disability, shall establish a pilot program with a utilization, contract-based goal of 7 per cent for the inclusion of qualified individuals with disabilities in any state contract for 3 services to be specified by the supplier diversity office that may include, but shall not be limited to: (i) janitorial and custodial services; (ii) landscaping services; (iii) mail room services; (iv) food services; (v) fleet management; (vi) manufacturing; (vii) trash removal; (viii) document destruction; (ix) electronic scanning of documents; and (x) facilities management services which shall include, but not be limited to, HVAC services, painting, emergency repair services and snow removal. The pilot program shall promote the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities and assist state contractors in evaluating and measuring levels of success in the recruitment, hiring, promotion and retention of individuals with disabilities. The utilization goal shall not be used as a quota, limit or restriction on the employment of individuals with disabilities.

For the purposes of the pilot program: (i) contractors shall apply the utilization goal to the direct workforce needs of the awarded contract or to the entire workforce of the contractor if the contractor has 50 or fewer employees; and (ii) a qualified individual shall have the same meaning as set forth in 41 C.F.R. 60-741.2. The pilot program shall not apply to existing state contracts.

The pilot program shall be established not later than September 1, 2018. Not later than September 1, 2019, the supplier diversity office shall file an interim report on the progress of the pilot program. An additional final report shall be filed not later than 180 days after the completion of the pilot program. The reports shall be filed with the clerks of the senate and house, the chairs of the senate and house committees on ways and means, the chairs of the joint committee on state administration and regulatory oversight and the chairs of the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities.

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