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Employees at the Department of Education have been placed on administrative leave for voluntarily attending a diversity training program prior to the 2nd Trump administration. Sheria Smith, president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 252, reported that as many as 55 employees have been put on leave, and that number is expected to grow.
Education Department employees have been informed by their union that anyone who attended the “Diversity Change Agent Program," a voluntary two-day seminar, may be placed on administrative leave based on Trump's new policy of dismantling DEI throughout the federal government.
Approximately 100 members of the department are said to have attended the seminar, which was not prohibited at the time. In fact, attendance at the seminar was encouraged by Betsy DeVos, Secretary of Education in Trump's first term. A diversity change agent in an unofficial role of someone trained to lead diversification awareness in an office.
As with other employees forced to go on leave by this White House, the Dept. of Ed. employees were informed that they were not being disciplined, and that pay and benefits would continue, but they were not welcome at the office, and access to their work email was disabled.
"It looks like they’re entrapping people, because they encouraged people to take these trainings...and are now maybe using these trainings as a basis to put them on administrative leave," Smith told NBC. She added that she believes the Trump administration is trying to get employees at the Dept. of Ed. to quit, ahead of his stated plan to shut the department down.
Education Dept. workers put on leave after taking diversity training during Trump's 1st term, union says
A letter to the affected employees obtained by NBC News said they would continue to receive their full salaries and benefits and wouldn't be required to do any work-related tasks.
www.nbcnews.com
