The Trump administration has announced that it will review the discrimination plans submitted by federal contractors, raising suspicions of “discriminatory employment practices.”
This decision appears to be the prelude to a direct attack on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies, which have long been in the crosshairs of the White House. The president had already revoked a 60-year-old rule that required state entities to actively combat workplace discrimination.
The new head of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), U.S. attorney Catherine Eschbach, stated that she will retroactively examine the documents submitted before the Republican administration to determine whether companies have violated the new regulations. This approach could put programs supporting women and minorities, such as mentoring programs, at risk, as they may be considered illegal.
The secondary goal of this move seems to be the elimination of any situation that favors the more disadvantaged segments of the population and seeks to consolidate a less equitable system. According to Eschbach, many of the practices previously adopted by the OFCCP were in conflict with U.S. laws, and all reform options are now up for discussion. The agency will need to examine whether company policies were in line with anti-discrimination laws or if they abused the introduction of quotas and preferences, which were not allowed even before Trump’s revocation of the regulations.
In 2023, the federal government allocated about $759 billion in contracts to private companies, including Microsoft, Google, Boeing, and Booz Allen Hamilton. Diversity policies, which were once adopted to meet ethical and legal standards, may now be under the aegis of the OFCCP, in light of the recent Supreme Court decision banning affirmative action, a set of policies aimed at equality in higher education, but which is also having repercussions in the private sector. In such an uncertain context, federal contractors are awaiting clear guidelines to understand how to comply with the new provisions.
Eschbach, in a memo to her staff, also confirmed that the agency would proceed with layoffs and office closures as part of a cost-cutting effort. This streamlining plan is part of the recommendations of Project 2025, the conservative blueprint that Trump adopted during the 2024 election campaign.
In his mission to reform government policies, Trump also closed all federal offices dedicated to DEI work, ordering the staff to take leave. The politician has accused inclusion practices of being at the root of numerous problems, including the airplane crash over the Potomac River in January.
In this complex scenario, the White House seems determined to redefine government priorities and question measures that have, until now, aimed to ensure a fairer work environment for all social and racial groups.
