Federal Judge Blocks Labor Department From Enforcing DEI Ban for Contractors

A national justice connected Tuesday issued a preliminary injunction that prevents the U.S. Department of Labor from requiring authorities contractors and assistance recipients to certify they bash not run immoderate diversity, equity and inclusion programs that tally afoul of anti-discrimination laws until further bid from the court.

Judge Matthew Kennelly of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued the ruling successful effect to a suit filed by Chicago Women successful Trades, a nonprofit dedicated to grooming and retaining women successful skilled operation trades that receives respective grants from the Department of Labor.

The certification proviso is simply a cardinal portion of President Donald Trump’s enforcement orders aimed astatine curbing DEI programs due to the fact that contractors and assistance recipients could beryllium subjected to crippling fiscal penalties nether the False Claims Act if they are recovered successful usurpation of it.

The suit filed by Chicago Women successful Trades argued that Trump’s enforcement orders infringe connected First Amendment Rights and are truthful wide and vague successful their explanation of what mightiness represent amerciable DEI arsenic to marque compliance impossible.

Kennelly had already issued a impermanent restraining bid against the Labor Department past period that was shorter successful duration. His bid is constricted successful scope due to the fact that helium declined to widen the injunction to different national agencies beyond DOL.

However, helium ruled that Chicago Women successful Trades was yet apt to win successful its suit against cardinal parts of the enforcement orders, penning that it is “anything but obvious” what constitutes “illegal DEI programs” successful the government’s view.

The suit is 1 of respective challenging Trump’s enforcement orders targeting DEI programs successful some the backstage and nationalist sectors. A national appeals tribunal past period lifted a Baltimore judge’s artifact connected the anti-DEI orders successful a akin case.

Trump signed 2 DEI-related enforcement orders successful January, 1 of which directs national agencies to destruct their ain DEI activities and extremity immoderate “equity-related” grants oregon contracts. The different takes broader purpose by imposing the certification proviso connected each companies and institutions with authorities contracts oregon assistance dollars. It besides directs national agencies to place backstage companies, non-profits oregon foundations for imaginable probe into DEI practices.

In effect to Tuesday’s ruling, Justice Department spokesperson Natalie Baldassarre said that the DOJ “has vigorously defended President Trump’s enforcement actions, including the bid to extremity extremist and wasteful authorities DEI programs, and volition proceed to bash so.”

Chicago Women successful Trades and lawyers for the enactment had nary contiguous comment.

Kennelly connected Tuesday besides prohibited the Labor Department from canceling oregon freezing a congressionally-appropriated assistance to Chicago Women In Trades nether the Women successful Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations initiative, which aims to grow pathways for women seeking to participate skilled trades. Kennelly said taking distant that assistance would interruption separation of powerfulness provisions nether the Constitution.

However, Kennelly’s injunction is narrower successful scope than his earlier determination to prohibit the Labor Department from canceling each grants to Chicago Women successful Trades.

Copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed.

Topics Legislation Contractors