OFCCP is perfectly happy to have large applicant pools where multiple candidates are hired into an applicant pool. It increases the chances there will be some kind of disparity involving members of a protected classification, which is one of the things that OFCCP seeks during compliance reviews. There is no OFCCP rule that says companies can't hire multiple candidates into one requisition. Thus, in your example above, you can hire five individuals into the same requisition. However, good practice says that if you're going to hire more than one individual into a requisition, the qualifications for each position should be exactly the same, and all candidates hired into the requisition must meet the qualifications associated with that requisition. In your example, you indicate that individuals would be hired into the same title and level with the same requirements. Thus, hiring multiple people into this requisition may make sense. However, be aware that if you have four persons hired into exactly the same position and a fifth person who is hired into a slightly different position, you may need to spend many hours justifying why the fifth individual was hired into a different position. In considering whether to hire multiple people into one requisition, there are factors other than the ones you name above that may be important to consider. One of these factors is timing. If you recruit and hire three people in winter, and then recruit and hire two more individuals in fall, you may effectively have two separate applicant pools. Location is also important. If you have five of the exact same openings, but two are in Dallas and three are in Boston, you may effectively have two separate applicant pools. There are other factors that may affect whether your applicant pools are, in fact, identical for your openings within a requisition. I hope this is helpful. Best of luck with your openings.

You can use this OFCCP audit checklist to ensure you're doing what is required to maintain OFCCP's regulations including VEVRAA, Section 503, and EO 11246. Or request a demo to streamline your compliance and recruiting efforts.