Jan 21 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump escalated his campaign against diversity programs on Tuesday by pressuring the private sector to join the initiative and telling government employees in offices administering such programs they would be placed on paid leave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On his first day in office Trump issued a series of executive orders<\/u><\/a> to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs, which attempt to promote opportunities for women, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ people and other traditionally underrepresented groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Civil rights advocates have argued such programs are necessary to address longstanding inequities and structural racism. Trump and his supporters say DEI programs end up unfairly discriminating against other Americans and weaken the importance of candidates’ merit in job hiring or promotion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In an executive order<\/u><\/a> issued on Tuesday, Trump revoked executive orders dating as far back as 1965 on environmental actions, equal employment opportunities and encouragement to federal contractors to achieve workforce balancing on race, gender and religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The 1965 order that was revoked was signed by then-President Lyndon Johnson to protect the rights of workers employed by federal contractors and ensure they remained free from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin, according to the Labor Department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Trump executive order seeks to dissuade private companies that receive government contracts from using DEI programs and hiring on the basis of race and sex – what the order called “illegal DEI discrimination and preferences” – and asks government agencies to identify private companies that might be subject to civil investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “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 said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Full details on how the Trump administration would enforce “civil compliance investigations” were not immediately available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The order issued on Tuesday stipulates that federal and private-sector employment preferences for military veterans could continue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The executive order was celebrated by conservative activists and Republican leaders. It was also met with condemnation from civil rights leaders who are strategizing how to respond to Trump’s actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n