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Mississippi First Act – Employment Plans

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Mississippi First Act and Public Works Contracts – Employment Plans

The Mississippi First Act (Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-5-37) applies to public works contracts of $5,000.00 that are financed by funds received by state and local governments because of an oil spill or a natural disaster. To read the law, click here.»

The Mississippi First Act requires a contractor awarded this type of public works contract to submit an employment plan to the government authority involved in the contract and to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security (MDES).

In the employment plan, the contractor must include this information concerning the contractor and its subcontractors:

  1. The types of jobs involved in the public works project;
  2. The skill level of the jobs involved in the project;
  3. Wage information for the jobs involved in the project;
  4. The number of vacant positions that the contractor and any subcontractor need to fill;
  5. How the contractor and any subcontractor will recruit low-wage and unemployed individuals for the job vacancies;
  6. Proof that the contractor is registered with MDES.

The contractor must file the employment plan within 7 days after the award of the contract. You can access the form required to file the employment plan here. 

Employment Plan Form for Public Works Projects (PDF Download)


From the date that the contract is awarded until 10 business days after MDES receives the contractor’s employment plan, the contractor and any subcontractor can hire only Mississippi residents who are verified by MDES or qualified individuals who are referred by MDES to fill the job vacancies listed in the employment plan.