Trump administration orders paid leave for all federal diversity, equity and inclusion staff; plans layoffs
US President Donald Trump’s administration has instructed that all federal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) staff be placed on paid leave, with agencies required to develop plans for their potential layoffs, according to a memo issued by the Office of Personnel Management on Tuesday.
FollowUS President Donald Trump’s administration has instructed that all federal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) staff be placed on paid leave, with agencies required to develop plans for their potential layoffs, according to a memo issued by the Office of Personnel Management on Tuesday.
This directive follows an executive order Trump signed on his first day in office, which mandated the dismantling of federal diversity and inclusion programs, affecting areas such as anti-bias training and funding for minority farmers and homeowners.
The memo mandates that DEI office staff be put on paid leave by 5 p.m. Wednesday and that all public DEI-related webpages be removed by the same deadline. Some federal departments had already taken down these pages prior to the memo's release. Agencies must also cancel any DEI-related training sessions, terminate related contracts, and require federal employees to report any attempts to rename DEI programs to conceal their true purpose within 10 days, under the threat of "adverse consequences."
By Thursday, federal agencies are instructed to compile a list of all federal DEI offices and employees as of Election Day. By the following Friday, they must develop a plan for a “reduction-in-force action” targeting these workers.
The memo, first reported by CBS News, follows Monday’s executive order, which accused former President Joe Biden of embedding “discrimination” programs into “virtually all aspects of the federal government” through diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
This move marks the first step in a broader effort to dismantle DEI programs across the country, which includes using the Justice Department and other agencies to investigate private companies that conservative critics argue are engaging in discriminatory training and hiring practices against non-minority groups, such as white men.
The executive order continues where Trump’s first administration left off. One of his last actions during his first term was issuing an executive order that prohibited federal contractors and recipients of federal funding from conducting anti-bias training that covered topics like systemic racism. On his first day in office, President Biden reversed that order and introduced two executive orders — which have since been rescinded — aimed at promoting DEI throughout the federal government.
While many of these changes may take months or even years to fully implement, Trump’s new anti-DEI agenda is more assertive than his previous efforts and comes at a time when the corporate world is more receptive. Major companies, including Walmart and Facebook, have already scaled back or ended certain diversity initiatives in response to Trump’s election and conservative-backed lawsuits targeting their practices.
Some policies and programs that Trump will aim to dismantle
Trump's executive order aims to dismantle many of Biden's efforts to integrate diversity and inclusion practices within the federal workforce, which includes about 2.4 million employees. Under Biden, all federal agencies were required to develop diversity plans, issue annual reports, and contribute data for a government-wide dashboard tracking hiring and promotion trends. The administration also established a Chief Diversity Officers Council to oversee DEI implementation. Trump's order will eliminate these equity plans, terminate roles or offices dedicated to diversity, and remove DEI-related training and diversity goals from performance reviews.
In addition to targeting federal workforce diversity, Trump's order sets the stage for an overhaul of federal spending on programs that conservative activists argue unfairly favor racial minorities and women. While it doesn't specify which programs will be targeted, the order mandates a review of contracts and grants to ensure compliance with the administration's anti-DEI stance. It also proposes settling lawsuits involving federal programs that benefit historically underserved communities, including some long-standing programs aimed at minority farmers or Black neighborhoods.
The order also addresses pay equity and hiring practices, although it’s unclear if Trump will seek to undo every initiative stemming from Biden’s DEI executive order. For instance, Biden had banned federal agencies from asking about an applicant’s salary history, a move many see as critical for addressing pay disparities. While Trump would need to go through a lengthy rule-making process to rescind such regulations, some groups hope the administration will not undo policies that have proven successful in certain states and cities.
Despite the sweeping changes outlined in Trump's order, experts caution that implementing such massive structural shifts is complex. Federal agencies have entrenched policies and procedures that cannot be easily reversed. Furthermore, some initiatives, like expanding job opportunities for those with criminal records, gained bipartisan support and were part of Biden's broader DEI goals, which sought to include marginalized communities in federal employment without creating "reverse discrimination."
subscribe to Asianet Newsable WhatsApp channel by clicking here.- Biden
- DEI programs
- Justice Department
- Trump
- Walmart
- anti-bias training
- bipartisan support
- contracts
- corporate world
- criminal records
- diversity
- equity
- executive order
- federal agencies
- federal spending
- federal workforce
- funding for minority farmers
- government overhaul
- hiring practices
- inclusion (DEI)
- layoffs
- marginalized communities
- paid leave
- pay equity
- policy shift
- public DEI webpages
- racial minorities
- reverse discrimination
- salary history
- systemic racism
- training sessions
- women
