In the midst of the rush, presidential order Since his January 20th inauguration ceremonyPresident Donald Trump Eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusionor DEI, a program within the federal government. But his efforts extend beyond DEI, with one recent order revoking civil rights-era rules that have helped protect millions of workers from discrimination.
Trump’s Jan. 21 order, “Ending Unlawful Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” repeals the Equal Employment Opportunity Rule signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965. . According to the rule, federal contractors, which currently employ 3.7 million people, must not discriminate against job applicants or workers on the basis of race, sex, or other protected characteristics.
The rollback of the 60-year-old rule eliminates foundational civil rights protections for American workers and signals an effort to focus on workplace issues beyond DEI, Labor said. experts say. DEI stands for Programs that Promote Equality in the Workplace for Women, Minorities, and Other Groups, and equal employment opportunity rules prohibit federal contractors from refusing to hire or reducing an employee’s pay based on race. They were prohibited from engaging in discriminatory practices such as reducing wages. Because of their gender.
“I’m still amazed that he took this extraordinary step,” said Fatima Goss Graves, CEO of the National Women’s Law Center. Reversing this rule suggests that “he is pursuing something bigger, a basic, foundational idea that we should be able to work in the workplace without discrimination.”
She added: “I would add that we agreed to that 60 years ago and the people of this country agree to that.”
What are equal employment opportunity rules?
The rule requires federal contractors to “take affirmative action” to ensure that workers are not discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin. mandated. This covered everything from hiring to promotion to pay, and the Ministry of Labor was tasked with overseeing the rules.
How will the repeal of this rule affect worker protections?
Labor experts say it remains illegal under U.S. law for employers to discriminate on the basis of race, gender or other characteristics.
However, repealing the Equal Employment Opportunity Act could have a chilling effect on lawsuits by federal contractor workers alleging unfair treatment and could impact the Department of Labor’s ability to pursue workplace discrimination lawsuits. said Josh Boxerman, government affairs manager at the National Capitol. Employment Law Project.
“When you take away this set of tools, it puts workers at a disadvantage,” Boxerman added.
Does this affect private employers?
Equal employment opportunity rules focus on federal contractors, but Trump’s executive order also applies to private employers, said Alex Hontos, a government contracts expert and partner at the law firm Dorsey & Whitney. He said there is a possibility that this could be the case.
“This is not just a problem for government contractors and grant recipients,” Hontos said. “This is clearly a phased approach that will also apply to the private sector. At the end of the You’ll see that they’re being directed to.” They need to engage with DEI or actually seek enforcement action in some way. ”
Even before Trump issued his order banning DEI from federal agencies and companies, meta, ford, mcdonalds and walmartare withdrawing from these programs. These decisions followed a 2023 Supreme Court ruling. Prohibition of affirmative action There was also pressure from conservative political activists when enrolling in college.
Why is President Trump banning DEI and rolling back equal employment opportunity rules?
Trump’s goal is to restore what his administration believes is a merit-based hiring system, according to officials and executive orders.
In his order rescinding the 1965 rule, the president wrote that “it is the policy of the United States to protect the civil rights of all Americans and to promote individual initiative, excellence, and hard work.” .
DEI policies have led to “unlawful and harmful discrimination that prioritizes people’s birth rather than their abilities,” he wrote.
According to the Meltzer Center at New York University, there have been numerous lawsuits targeting DEI programs, some of which argue that the policies discriminate against non-minorities or deny some workers’ free speech rights. There are also claims that it is infringing.
“The Trump administration has not removed the concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion as they are commonly understood,” said Free・Erec Smith, co-founder of Black Thought, says: It emphasizes the diversity of perspectives within the black community. “He’s removing an important version of social justice that is inherently divisive.”
What happens in a DEI program?
DEI programs are being eliminated from the federal government at the direction of the Trump administration.
All federal employees in DEI roles were placed on leave by 5pm EST Wednesday. The agency also has “closed all external-facing media (websites, social media accounts, etc.) for the DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility) Office,” canceled future DEI training, and was ordered to terminate the contract. by the same time on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Trump’s Jan. 21 executive order requires federal agencies to restrict publicly traded companies, large nonprofits, and other private institutions that have DEI programs that “constitute unlawful discrimination or preferential treatment.” It asks the government to prepare “up to nine possible civil compliance investigations.”
NELP’s Boxerman said that part of the executive order “seems to be an attempt to intimidate the private sector” regarding civil investigative discovery requirements in the private sector. “This seems like a clear effort to name and shame companies that are doing the right thing,” he said.
