Mandatory Change: Employers with this Poster must replace their current labor law poster to remain compliant. Our All In One Poster includes the updated required notices in one convenient format.
Need an Updated Federal Defense Poster?
What Employers need to know
Federal defense contractors are required to post specific notices from the Department of War (formerly the Department of Defense) Office of Inspector General, in addition to standard federal and state labor law posters. The Federal Defense Contractor poster bundle brings these notices together separately from the postings that apply to all employers under federal and state labor law. As of March 2026, that bundle is changing. Three notices are being removed, and the two that remain mandatory, the Whistleblower Protection Poster and the DoD Hotline Poster, are both being updated with new versions from the Office of Inspector General.
If your company holds a federal defense contract, here is what is changing, what is staying, and where to find the updated postings.
What Changed
The following notices are being removed from the Federal Defense Contractor poster:
- DoD Whistleblower Hotline
- DoD Whistleblower Protection Ombudsman
- OIG Fraud, Waste and Abuse Hotline
The OIG Fraud, Waste and Abuse Hotline notice duplicated information already covered on the DoD Hotline Poster, so only one version is being kept going forward.
These three notices are being removed because posting them was never a blanket requirement for every defense contractor. Whether they apply depends on the specific terms of a contractor's individual federal contract, not on defense contractor status generally. Two notices remain mandatory across the board: the Whistleblower Protection Poster and the DoD Hotline Poster. Both are being refreshed to new versions issued directly by the Office of Inspector General, and the Whistleblower Protection Poster reflects updated branding under the Department of War name.
Separately, contractors whose work is funded in whole or in part by Department of Homeland Security disaster relief funds are also required to post the DHS OIG Hotline notice, alongside the DoD Hotline Poster. That poster is being updated as well. It is not part of the standard Federal Defense Contractor poster and only applies when DHS funding is involved, but the timing lines up with these other updates, so it is worth confirming your version is current. Please see the image below for reference:
Key Details Included in the Notice
The updated Whistleblower Protection Poster outlines what service members, civilians, and contractor employees are protected from retaliation for reporting, including:
- Violations of law or regulation
- Gross mismanagement
- Gross waste of funds
- Abuse of authority
- Substantial harm to public health or safety
- Inadequate housing standards or deficits in the habitability of military privatized housing units
It also lists contact information for the Whistleblower Protection Coordinator, including an email address and website, and confirms that individuals can report anonymously, confidentially, or with consent to release their identity.
The updated DoD Hotline Poster covers a wider range of reportable conduct: fraud, waste, abuse, whistleblower reprisal, cybercrime, human trafficking, bribery, leaks of classified information, and suspected threats to homeland security. It is available to military members, civilians, and contractors alike, and includes DSN, toll free, and commercial phone numbers for the hotline. The poster's stated mission is to give people a confidential and reliable way to report misconduct involving Department of War personnel and operations, without fear of retaliation.
For contractors that also need the DHS OIG Hotline poster, the requirement generally applies to contracts exceeding five million dollars, or a lower threshold set by DHS. It gives employees a channel to report fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, or civil rights and civil liberties concerns tied to DHS programs or operations, and it is meant to be posted in addition to, not instead of, the DoD Hotline Poster.
As with other federal postings, these notices are typically produced as full size 11x17 inch posters, available on our website, and should be displayed where employees, applicants, and visitors can easily see them.
Other Workplace Posting Requirements.
- Shop the updated Federal Contractor Package or order the individual DoD Hotline and DHS OIG Hotline posters directly.
Where Can I Find More Information?
To make sure your workplace reflects these updates, take a look at the following resources:
- Review the original notices from the Department of War Office of Inspector General.
Because these requirements depend on the terms of your specific federal contract, it is worth confirming with your contracting officer or compliance team which notices apply to your organization before updating your postings.
