The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a category motion grievance with a federal employment board, asking it to overview the firings of staff who labored on variety, fairness and inclusion (DEI) and accessibility efforts.
The submitting notes that two orders signed by President Trump stretched again to Election Day, focusing on staff who labored on DEI and accessibility (known as DEIA) points however who had been transferred to different roles forward of his inauguration.
“The implementation of the EOs [executive orders] betrays their partisan political goals by targeting employees, not positions, for [reductions in force], and by insisting on the elimination of those employees whom the government perceived to have worked in DEIA on the date of the presidential election, November 5, 2024,” the grievance states.
The grievance, stuffed with the Advantage Methods Safety Board (MSPB), mentioned these staff had been “unlawfully punished for his or her perceived political affiliations.”
“Targeting hard working civil servants because they are associated with an idea the government dislikes violates the First Amendment. President Trump can’t drag us back to a dark chapter in history where the government targeted people simply for their views or values,” Scott Michelman, authorized director on the ACLU-D.C., mentioned in an announcement.
“The decision to go after people for DEI work they are no longer doing shows the administration’s true motive: to punish employees who they think hold values that clash with the president’s extremist agenda.”
The submitting notes that “Trump has explicitly associated DEIA programs with his Democratic predecessor, Joseph R. Biden.”
It additionally says the firing probably violated the Civil Rights Act, contending the employees had been focused for his or her intercourse and race.
The MSPB has briefly reinstated some staff fired by Trump, together with probationary staff who had been fired en masse. Probationary staff, who usually have been employed throughout the final yr or two, have to be fired for trigger.
Different staff who labored on DEI and accessibility points have beforehand filed authorized challenges past the MSPB.
A number of CIA officers who had been briefly assigned to DEI and accessibility roles sued after they had been positioned on administrative go away and confronted imminent firings.
“None of these officer’s activities was or is illegal, and at no time have the agencies employing Plaintiffs contended that they individually engaged in any misconduct, nor are they accused of poor performance,” the go well with says.
