Fed Workers File Class Action Lawsuit  03/27 06:10

   

   NEW YORK (AP) -- A group of federal employees targeted for dismissal because 
of their involvement in diversity, equity and inclusion activities has filed a 
class action complaint against the Trump administration.

   The complaint alleges that the ongoing mass firings unlawfully target 
federal employees based on their perceived political views, infringe on their 
First Amendment rights and violate anti-discrimination laws by 
disproportionally affecting workers who are not white men.

   The complaint was filed before the Merit Systems Protection Board, an 
independent federal agency, by the American Civil Liberties Union, Democracy 
Forward and two law firms. It was filed on behalf of Mahri Stainnak, a 16-year 
federal employee who was working at the Office of Personnel Management when 
they were dismissed as part of President Donald Trump's executive order to 
eliminate DEI programs from the federal government.

   According to the complaint, Stainnak had been working as director of OPM's 
Talent Innovation Group -- a position that was not DEI-related -- upon 
receiving a "Reduction In Force" notice citing Trump's executive order. 
Stainnak had previously held the position of deputy director OPM's Office of 
DEIA.

   The complaint alleges the federal government is violating the "Reduction in 
Force" system by firing Stainnak and other employees for their past work or 
activities instead of eliminating actual roles related to DEI. In doing so, the 
complaint said the Trump administration's orders "betrays their partisan 
political goals by targeting employees, not positions, for RIFs."

   Some employees were targeted for participating in employee resource groups 
or DEI trainings, rather than their current roles, the complaint said. It cites 
Trump's past remarks calling DEI work part of "leftist ideology" and a "woke" 
political agenda as evidence that the government is for their "presumed 
political affiliation."

   A spokesperson for the Justice Department, named as a defendant in the 
complaint, did not immediately reply to request for comment.

   The complaint before the Merit System Protection Board, an independent 
federal agency, is a required step for exhausting administrative procedures 
before eventually filing a civil lawsuit in federal court, said Kelly Dermody 
of Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein and Mary Kuntz of Kalijarvi, Chuzi, 
Newman & Fitch PC, the attorneys representing the workers.

   The complaint identifies three other federal employees, currently on 
administrative leave, who will be added to the complaint when their dismissals 
officially take effect next month. Dermody and Kuntz said the complaint will 
continue to be amended to add more federal workers as their dismissals take 
effect.

   Dermody and Kuntz said their investigation and interviews with employees 
indicate that the firings disproportionally affected workers who are women, 
people of color and LGBTQ in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, 
which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex 
and national origin.

   The complaint demands that the government provide a list of employees who 
were placed on leave or fired because of the DEI executive order, along with 
their race and gender.