Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, OPM NEWS—Memo provides guidance to agencies on implementation of ‘biological truth’ executive order, (Jul 11, 2025)

By Patricia K. Ruiz, J.D.

The OPM’s memorandum supports the Trump administration policy that “sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”

A memorandum from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) provides guidance to agencies regarding Executive Order (EO) 14168, entitled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” issued January 20, 2025. The guidance provides actions agencies should have already completed that are necessary to implementing the EO. The OPM requested that agencies submit by August 11, 2025, a progress report on the steps taken to implement the EO.

Acknowledgement of gender identity. During the Biden-Harris administration, the federal government promoted the use of preferred pronouns, acknowledged individuals’ gender identity, and allowed individuals identifying as women to use women’s bathrooms, locker rooms, and lactation rooms. In contrast, the memorandum states, “[I]n recent years, a radical new movement, embracing ‘gender ideology,’ attempts to erase [the] truth” that “sex is binary and unchangeable.” The memorandum argues that this erasure has direct, negative consequences for women, stating, “allowing men who identify as women to gain access to single-sex spaces and activities designed for women,” and improperly transforming laws and policies designed to protect sex-based opportunities into laws and policies that undermine them.

Implementation of EO. OPM listed steps agencies should already have taken to implement the directives of EO 14168 that federal funds shall not be used to promote gender ideology, that federal policies and documents shall consistently use “sex” and not “gender,” and that women’s intimate spaces are protected. The steps are: (1) emailing all agency employees announcing that the agency will be complying with the EO and the OPM’s guidance; (2) placing all employees whose department or position description involved inculcating or promoting gender ideology on paid administrative leave; (3) reviewing agency email systems and turning off features prompting users for their pronouns; (4) cancelling any employee trainings inculcating or promoting gender ideology or that have done so in the past; (5) disbanding or cancelling any employee resource groups or special emphasis programs that inculcated or promoted gender ideology or that have done so in the past; (6) ensuring agency-issued identification documents refer to sex and not gender; (7) reviewing and revoking any and all agency personnel policies that reflect or promote gender ideology or encourage or promote the classification of employees based on gender instead of biological sex; (8) ensuring that intimate spaces and federal worksites designated for women, girls, or females—or for men, boys, or males—are designated by biological sex and not gender identity; and (9) reporting to the OPM on these steps.

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