(a) Employment practices. (1) Whenever a primary objective of the Federal financial assistance to a program to which this subpart applies is to provide employment, a recipient of the assistance may not (directly or through contractual or other arrangements) subject any individual to discrimination on the grounds of race, color, national origin, or sex (when covered by section 16 and section 401) in its employment practices under the program (including recruitment or recruitment advertising, employment, layoff, or termination, upgrading, demotion or transfer, training, participation in upward mobility projects, rates of pay or other forms of compensation, and use of facilities). This prohibition also applies to programs where the primary objective of the Federal financial assistance is:

(i) To assist individuals through employment to meet expenses incident to the commencement or continuation of their education or training;

(ii) To provide work experience which contributes to the education or training of the individuals involved;

(iii) To reduce the unemployment of individuals or to help them through employment to meet subsistence needs; or

(iv) To provide employment to individuals who, because of handicaps, cannot be readily absorbed in the competitive labor market. The requirements applicable to construction under any such program are to be those specified in or under part III of Executive Order 11246, as amended, or any Executive Order which supersedes it.

(2) In regard to Federal financial assistance which does not have provision of employment as a primary objective, the provisions of paragraph (a)(1) of this section apply to the employment practices of the recipient if discrimination on the ground of race, color, national origin, or sex (when covered by section 16 or section 401) in such employment practices tends to exclude persons from participation in, deny them the benefits of, or subject them to discrimination under the program receiving Federal financial assistance. In any such case, the provisions of paragraph (a)(1) of this section apply to the extent necessary to assure equality of opportunity to and nondiscriminatory treatment of beneficiaries.

(3) Paragraph (a)(1) also applies to covered employment as defined in § 1040.12(a)(2).

(b) Enforcement of title VI compliance with respect to covered employment practices is not to be superseded by State or local merit systems relating to the employment practices of the same recipient.