Sec.46a-68-4. Equal opportunity standards

(a) Obligations of sponsors. Each sponsor of an apprenticeship program agrees to:

(1) Recruit, select, employ and train apprentices during their apprenticeship without discrimination because of race, color, religious creed, sex, mental retardation, marital status, national origin, ancestry, or physical disability, including, but not limited to blindness.

(2) Uniformly apply rules and regulations concerning apprentices, including but not limited to equality of wages, periodic advancement, promotion, assignment of work, job performance, rotation among all work processes of the trade, imposition of penalties or other disciplinary action and all aspects of the administration of the apprenticeship program; and

(3) Adopt an affirmative action plan as required by this regulation and to take affirmative action to provide equal opportunity in apprenticeship.

(b) Equal opportunity pledge. Each sponsor of an affirmative action program agrees to include in its standards and its announcement for apprentice openings the following pledge: "The recruitment, selection, employment and training of apprentices during their apprenticeship shall be without discrimination because of race, color, religious creed, sex, mental retardation, marital status, national origin, ancestry or physical disability, including but not limited to, blindness. The sponsor will take affirmative action to provide equal opportunity in applicable laws and regulations."

(c) Programs presently registered and newly registered sponsors. Such programs and sponsors shall, within 60 days of the effective date of these regulations, take the following action:

(1) Assure inclusion in the standards of its apprenticeship program the equal opportunity pledge in section 46a-68-4(b).

(2) Adopt and implement an affirmative action plan as required by these regulations, unless section 46a-68-4(d) applies.

(3) Adopt and implement a selection procedure as required by these regulations.

(4) Submit the requested documentation to the department, including copies of its standards, affirmative action plan and selection procedure.

(5) Make documents which support the above available at the worksite for inspection and review by the department.

(d) Sponsors subject to federal laws and executive orders shall be judged in compliance with the requirements of this regulation pertaining to recruitment standards, affirmative action plans and selection procedures if it submits to the department satisfactory evidence that it is already subject to a federal equal employment opportunity program. Satisfactory evidence is defined as a letter from the sponsor's federal compliance review agency indicating that the sponsor's equal employment opportunity program has been reviewed and has been found to be in compliance with federal laws and executive orders. Alternatively, if a letter from the federal compliance review agency is unavailable, the sponsor shall send a letter to the department indicating that it has developed an equal employment opportunity program pursuant to appropriate federal laws and executive orders, that to the best of its knowledge it is in compliance with said laws and executive orders.

(e) Programs with fewer than a total of five apprentices. A sponsor of a program in which fewer than a total of five apprentices are employed shall not be required to adopt an affirmative action plan under section 46a-68-5 or a selection procedure under section 46a-68-6 provided that such program was not adopted to circumvent, and does not have the effect of circumventing, the requirements of this regulation. Exceptions to this requirement may be granted in accordance with section 46a-68-16.

(Effective October 22, 1982)