President Trump has revoked the executive order that served as the foundation for the Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), which is tasked with ensuring federal contractors comply with anti-discrimination laws and maintain affirmative action programs.
The OFCCP oversees some of the largest U.S. companies that collectively receive hundreds of billions of dollars annually in federal contracts. In a sweeping executive order issued late Tuesday, Trump directed the office to cease promoting diversity and affirmative action, prohibiting contractors and subcontractors from engaging in “workforce balancing” based on race, sex, color, religion, national origin, or “sexual preference.”
This marks another significant step in Trump’s efforts to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. On January 20, he signed executive orders eliminating DEI programs within federal agencies and restricting the federal government’s recognition of gender to strictly male and female.
Tuesday’s order also aims to influence private-sector companies, urging them to end what Trump characterized as “illegal” DEI initiatives by redefining such programs as discriminatory.
Trump’s order repealed Executive Order 11246, which was established in 1965 and provided much of the OFCCP’s authority. Under the now-rescinded order, federal contractors were required to implement affirmative action programs, set placement goals for women and minorities if they were underrepresented in the workforce, and assess and address shortcomings in their recruitment efforts.
The OFCCP, previously tasked with auditing contractor compliance, investigating complaints, and analyzing employment data for potential discrimination, will now see its role sharply diminished. Contractors have been granted a 90-day period to fulfill obligations in effect as of January 20 but must certify that their practices do not include DEI initiatives deemed unlawful by the administration.
Additionally, Trump rescinded Executive Order 13672, a 2014 directive that protected federal contractor employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. These protections predated the U.S. Supreme Court’s recognition of such rights under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act in 2020.
