Divya Nimmagadda is a student at Harvard Law School.
In the post-transition flood of executive orders and actions, one effort in particular takes special aim at diversity and inclusion measures with the federal workforce.
As part of a larger executive action and order aimed at dismantling DEI programming, President Trump rolled back the Equal Employment Act of 1965. The Act, in the form of an executive order (Executive Order 11246), was originally put in place by President Johnson in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement and the year after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1974. It instituted affirmative action programming within the federal workplace and “prohibit[ed] federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin.” Within the same action, Trump revoked another 2011 executive order that “Establish[ed] a Coordinated Government-wide Initiative to Promote Diversity and Inclusion in the Federal Workforce” and, in a forward-looking measure, is requiring the head of each agency to include in any government contract or grant “[a] term requiring such counterparty or recipient to certify that it does not operate any programs promoting DEI that violate any applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws.” Based on Trump’s directive, the Office of Personnel Management issued a memo ordering all DEI employees to be placed on administrative leave by Wednesday of next week.
We are already beginning to see the effects of the administration’s effort to limit the federal DEI infrastructure. A CIA spokesperson stated that the agency had gotten rid of its office for diversity and inclusion. The Agriculture, Treasury and Labor Departments had each taken down some webpages on diversity measures by yesterday morning.
Relatedly, yesterday, the administration sent out a message to federal employees warning them that they may face “adverse consequences” if they attempted to hide efforts by fellow colleagues or supervisors to defy the above order to end all DEI programs. Employees were given ten days to report such efforts to “disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language.”
Daily News & Commentary
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February 7
In today’s News and Commentary, the NLRB withdraws its objections to SpaceX’s constitutional challenge, Whole Foods asks the NLRB to set aside a union election in Philadelphia, and the AFL-CIO launches a campaign to push back against Musk. The NLRB filed a letter with the Fifth Circuit indicating it would not address SpaceX’s challenge to […]
February 6
Gwynne Wilcox files lawsuit challenging her removal from the NLRB, and unions file a lawsuit challenging DOJE's request to access Department of Labor information.
February 5
Trump's disagreements with Abruzzo & Wilcox, Dollar General's plan for ICE agents, remote work in federal CBA's.
February 4
In today's news and commentary King Soopers workers announce a strike, Congressman Biggs introduces a bill to abolish OSHA, the UAW announces willingness to support Trump's tariffs, and Yale New Haven Health System faces a wage and hour class action.
February 2
President Trump seeks to nullify recent collective bargaining agreements with federal workers; Trump fired the NLRB’s acting General Counsel; Costco and the Teamsters reach a tentative deal averting a strike; Black History Month began yesterday with the theme African Americans and Labor
January 31
In today’s news and commentary, AFGE and AFSCME sue Trump for an Executive Order stripping protections from government employees, Trump fires members of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Amazon shutters operations in the entirety of Quebec in response to union successes. On Wednesday, two unions representing government employees–American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and […]