By Casey Harper | The Center Square
(Worthy News) – President Donald Trump ordered that starting Wednesday, all federal staff working on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion activities will immediately be put on paid leave.
That announcement came via a memo from the Office of Personnel Management, essentially the federal government’s human resources department. According to the memo, all DEI offices will be closed, and federal agency leaders have until the end of the month to submit plans on how they will close those offices.
All online websites and social media accounts must be removed as well, according to the memo.
The immediacy of the action characterizes well Trump’s return to the White House. He issued a flurry of executive orders on a range of topics.
Government unions blasted the move.
“Ultimately, these attacks on DEIA are just a smokescreen for firing civil servants, undermining the apolitical civil service, and turning the federal government into an army of yes-men loyal only to the president, not the Constitution,” American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley, said in a statement.
Kelley said the government already exclusively hires based on merit, but internal documents at places like the Pentagon show racial quota goals for promoting internally, for instance.
The news of the memo comes just after an executive order from the president on Monday ended federal DEI programs and ordered the eventual firing of those federal workers.
The order called for firing “to the maximum extent allowed by law, all DEI, DEIA, and ‘environmental justice’ offices and positions (including but not limited to ‘Chief Diversity Officer’ positions); all ‘equity action plans,’ “equity” actions, initiatives, or programs, ‘equity-related’ grants or contracts; and all DEI or DEIA performance requirements for employees, contractors, or grantees.”
The order also requires federal agencies to create a list of DEI related staff and activities, including federal contractors and other federal programs like “environmental justice” positions which engage in DEI work.
Critics have argued for years that federal agencies have become distracted by DEI initiatives.
“This order sends a strong message to the American people that our medical professionals will be guided by merit and excellence, not identity politics,” Kristina Rasmussen, executive director of Do No Harm, said in a statement. “For too long medical schools and associations have embedded DEI in admissions, hiring, curriculum, and scholarships, compromising the integrity of the medical profession and the quality of patient care.”
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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