OAN Staff Blake Wolf
1:52 PM – Wednesday, January 22, 2025
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that federal workers operating in DEI offices will be placed on paid leave following President Donald Trump’s executive order barring Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs across the federal workforce.
An internal memo from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) ordering all DEI employees to be placed on leave by Wednesday evening was confirmed by Leavitt.
“Send a notification to all employees of DEIA offices that they are being placed on paid administrative leave effective immediately as the agency takes steps to close/end all DEIA initiatives, offices and programs,” the memo sent out by Charles Ezell, the Acting Director of the OPM.
“To every reporter asking about this: I can gladly confirm,” Leavitt wrote in an X post.
The memo added that DEI programs: “divided Americans by race, wasted taxpayer dollars, and resulted in shameful discrimination,” while asking employees to report the change of “any contract description or personnel position description since November 5, 2024 to obscure the connection between the contract and DEIA or similar ideologies.”
The shutdown of DEI offices across the federal workforce is a part of Trump’s effort to peel back former President Biden’s goal of promoting diverse groups for positions of power throughout the federal government.
Trump has consistently argued that an individual should be awarded a role or position if they have the necessary skill set, intellect, and experience — not simply due to their sexual orientation, gender, or skin color.
“President Trump campaigned on ending the scourge of DEI from our federal government and returning America to a merit based society where people are hired based on their skills, not for the color of their skin,” Leavitt added. “This is another win for Americans of all races, religions, and creeds. Promises made, promises kept.”
President Trump emphasized ending DEI policies throughout his time on the campaign trail, maintaining that the initiatives prioritize diversity quotas rather than choosing the best person for the job.
Additionally, the Trump administration is also requesting that the attorney general submit “recommendations for enforcing Federal civil-rights laws and taking other appropriate measures to encourage the private sector to end illegal discrimination and preferences, including DEI,” within 120 days.
“As a part of this plan, each agency shall identify up to nine potential civil compliance investigations of publicly traded corporations, large non-profit corporations or associations, foundations with assets of 500 million dollars or more, State and local bar and medical associations, and institutions of higher education with endowments over 1 billion dollars,” the order continued.
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