Trump Fires Two EEOC Democratic Commissioners in Rare Move (2)

President Donald Trump fired two Democratic Equal Employment Opportunity Commission members in an unprecedented move that undercuts the Democrats’ voting majority on the board, the pair confirmed in statements Tuesday.

Trump’s firing of EEOC Commissioners Jocelyn Samuels and Charlotte Burrows leaves two seats on the five-member civil rights panel to be filled by nominations from the new administration.

The president also axed the commission’s general counsel, Karla Gilbride, who confirmed her dismissal in a statement posted to LinkedIn on Tuesday evening.

The firings of Samuels and Burrows bypass historical precedent of leaving commissioners in place at the independent agency. Their ouster clears a path for the Trump administration to advance its second-term civil rights law agenda, which has so far targeted diversity, equity, and inclusion programs and gender identity protections through executive orders.

Due to staggered terms, the Democrats would have maintained a majority on the five-member EEOC until 2026, when Samuels’ term was set to expire. Without the Democrats’ voting bloc in place, recently named acting chair, Republican Andrea Lucas, and future Trump appointees can steer the agency’s policy and litigation agenda.

Burrows, the former chair of the EEOC, Samuels, and Gilbride received word of their firings from the White House late Monday.

“I am proud of the work my colleagues and I have done to help remove barriers for equal opportunity for all workers and to promote fair and nondiscriminatory workplaces. While I strongly disagree with the President’s actions, and will explore all legal options available to me, I will continue to do all I can to fight for the rights of American workers and to support the efforts of others who do the same,” Burrows said her statement, in which she also said she’s working with lawyers from Katz Banks Kumin LLP.

Trump also terminated two other key officials from another independent labor-focused agency, the National Labor Relations Board. He fired Democratic member Gwynne Wilcox and Biden-era General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo on Monday.

The firings come after Republican-led states have cited protections commissioners at the EEOC have from being removed as unconstitutional in separate lawsuits challenging the agency’s workplace anti-harassment guidance and Pregnant Workers Fairness Act rules.

The EEOC is one of several federal agencies facing lawsuits from challengers that argue its leadership is unconstitutionally protected from being fired at will by the president.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as an EEOC Commissioner, and I deeply regret this Administration’s short-sighted and unprecedented decision to remove me from a position to which I remain committed. I am considering my legal options and will continue to advocate strenuously for the civil rights of all workers,” Samuels said in a statement.

Gilbride’s firing has more precedent in the commission’s history. Former President Joe Biden fired Trump-appointed EEOC Chair Sharon Gustafson in 2021 after she refused to step down.

Gilbride said in her posted statement she is proud of the results the EEOC achieves for workers, and is “disheartened by the recent executive orders that seem intended to distract federal agencies from their day-to-day work of serving the public and instead force them to focus on settling scores with, and erasing traces of, the previous administration.”

Only Lucas, who Trump named as acting chair Jan. 20, along with Democratic Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal remain on the civil rights panel. There is also a vacancy open from a seat left by Keith Sonderling, who Trump recently named deputy labor secretary.