The Trump administration has taken steps to eliminate so-called race-conscious hiring practices in federal agencies, emphasizing merit-based employment standards.
| PULSE POINTS |
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: The Trump administration has removed federal hiring guidelines that emphasized race-conscious hiring practices. 📺 DETAIL: On Thursday, the Trump administration removed a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) measure from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The OPM is the agency responsible for setting the federal government’s hiring policies. Specifically, the President removed the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures, a set of guidelines first formulated in 1978 to encourage race-conscious hiring decisions. The guidelines had focused on “disparate impact,” the idea that certain hiring practices can produce insufficient representation for different racial groups. Critics argue that the guidelines ultimately lead to the prioritization of race over merit in federal hiring and promotion decisions. The Trump administration’s new rule removing the guidelines will be finalized 60 days after its issuance. This follows an opinion from the Department of Justice concluding that the guidelines were unconstitutional. 💬 KEY QUOTE: “Federal hiring should be based on merit, qualifications, and the ability to perform the job… This rule ensures OPM’s regulations reflect legal guidance while preserving the rigorous, job-related standards that help agencies recruit and hire the most qualified workforce in service to the American people,” said OPM Director Scott Kupor. 🎯 IMPACT: This move is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to dismantle DEI nationwide. Back in February, a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld the President’s executive order abolishing DEI in federal employment, contracting, and grant processes. Since then, it is clear that the administration feels sufficiently empowered to push forward with rolling back DEI measures. However, while advancements are being made at the federal level, there are efforts being made at the state level, specifically in Democrat-controlled states, to retain DEI measures, creating tension between federal and state government. 📺 FLASHBACK: In January 2025, President Donald J. Trump issued an executive order aimed at dismantling the “dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI) or ‘diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility’ (DEIA) that can violate the civil-rights laws of this Nation.” |
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