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A federal court granted a nationwide preliminary injunction prohibiting the federal government from implementing or enforcing Executive Order 13950 (“EO 13950”) on free speech and due process grounds. Government contractors and grant recipients were concerned that EO 13950, issued by the Trump Administration in September, could force them to change the way they implement diversity and sensitivity training or face the possibility of losing government contracts.

This ruling applies to all federal contractors and those receiving federal grants, meaning the contractors and grant recipients are likely free, for at least the time being, to conduct workplace training on issues such as unconscious and systemic bias, privilege, and affirmative-action without the fear of having their contracts canceled, or of being declared ineligible for future federal government contracts because of EO 13950. It is important to note, however, the Court has not issued a permanent injunction. Federal contractors and companies receiving federal grants should consider coordinating with legal counsel to monitor future court proceedings.

Note the court’s preliminary injunction order does not apply to those portions of EO 13950 relating to the United States Uniformed Services or to federal agencies’ direct training of their own personnel. In other words, the federal government may continue to prohibit its own agencies and the military from conducting any workplace training “that inculcates in its employees any form of race or sex stereotyping or any form of race or sex scapegoating.”

Continue reading our previous post on this topic, “The 2020 Election and Executive Orders: How Federal Contractors Provide Lawful Diversity and Unconscious Bias Training”

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Photo of Philip Person Philip Person

Philip I. Person focuses his practice on representing employers in wage and hour, wrongful termination, harassment, discrimination, retaliation, trade secret misappropriation, non-competition, non-solicitation, and whistleblower claims. Philip is an experienced litigator, having defended employers against single-plaintiff and class action litigation in both federal

Philip I. Person focuses his practice on representing employers in wage and hour, wrongful termination, harassment, discrimination, retaliation, trade secret misappropriation, non-competition, non-solicitation, and whistleblower claims. Philip is an experienced litigator, having defended employers against single-plaintiff and class action litigation in both federal and state courts. He also represents employers in labor and employment arbitrations.

Philip coordinates with executives and management to develop and implement plans to mitigate the employer’s risk. He often counsels and advises his clients on employment issues pertaining to leaves of absence, disciplinary actions, terminations, restructurings, reductions in force, employee classifications, handbooks, and policies.

As the Co-Host of The Performance Review podcast, Philip regularly provides insightful employment law updates and interviews company representatives regarding employment laws and issues affecting multiple industries.

In addition to his employment litigation and counseling practice, Philip serves as the Co-Chair of the Restructuring & Employment Due Diligence Subgroup within Greenberg Traurig’s Labor & Employment Group, Co-Lead of Greenberg Traurig’s California Wage & Hour Taskforce, Co-Chair of the Greenberg Traurig African American Inclusion Network (GAIN), and as a member of the Greenberg Traurig Justice Initiative.

Photo of Chris Cruz Chris Cruz

Chris Cruz is an experienced employment law litigator and counselor who focuses on representing employers in a wide range of complex, single plaintiff and multiparty matters involving wage and hour, wrongful termination, and retaliation issues. His work as an in-house attorney has provided

Chris Cruz is an experienced employment law litigator and counselor who focuses on representing employers in a wide range of complex, single plaintiff and multiparty matters involving wage and hour, wrongful termination, and retaliation issues. His work as an in-house attorney has provided him with deep insight into the business objectives of his clients and their day-to-day concerns, allowing Chris to provide practical legal advice to his clients on compliance and strategic matters such as employee discipline, reductions in force, accommodations and leaves of absence, development and implementation of policies and handbooks, and other workplace issues. Chris efficiently guides clients and strives to help employers avoid litigation before it begins, but has the courtroom experience necessary to take a case to verdict when it is in his client’s best interest.

In addition to his employment experience, Chris has broad experience in complex commercial, product liability, and financial litigation from pre-litigation assessment and settlement negotiations to trials across the country.