On his first day in office, President Trump signed Executive Order (E.O.) 14168 to establish the federal government’s position that there are two sexes, male and female, that are not changeable. The E.O. defines “female” as “a person belonging, at conception, to the sex that produces the large reproductive cell” and defines “male” as “a person belonging, at conception, to the sex that produces the small reproductive cell.”
The E.O. directs federal agencies to use these definitions when interpreting or applying laws and regulations to enforce laws governing sex-based rights, protections, opportunities, and accommodations. Agency forms that require an individual to list their sex must list “male” or “female” and shall not request gender identity. The order directs agencies to rescind all guidance documents, or parts of guidance documents, that are inconsistent with the new E.O.
It is unclear how the EEOC will address employer reporting of EEO-1 data for individuals who do not identify as male or female.
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC), our affiliated nonprofit membership association, can read more here.