Disability Rights Watch

Category: Employment

Employment related information.

  • Breaking: Nearly Half the Department of Education Laid Off Tuesday, Including from Legally Mandated Positions

    Breaking: Nearly Half the Department of Education Laid Off Tuesday, Including from Legally Mandated Positions

    On Tuesday, 11 March, the Department of Education fired over 1,300 workers, nearly half of the department. Afterward, Linda McMahon told reports that legally-mandated employees, and programs protecting disabled students’ rights were not affected; however, that was a lie. In the same interview, she also revealed she did not know what IDEA stands for.

    Federal work has some in-built protections to layoffs generally, but on top of that, some of the jobs removed yesterday are legally-mandated, making it illegal for those positions to be vacant.

    The layoffs had a wide reach across departments, but it’s been confirmed that some of those removed were from OSERS, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.

    OSERS oversees and funds early intervention and IDEA law, various Vocational Rehabilitation programs, and special institutions like the American Printing House for the Blind, Helen Keller National center for DeafBlind, National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) and Gallaudet.

    Without a functioning department for funding and advocating for these programs, they are in danger. With respect to Gallaudet, specifically, the university has some special protections due to its Charter, but it is not immune to cuts, and there is no specific amount of funding guaranteed.

    Ultimately, this is no longer about debating various political policies anymore, but about returning to the rule of law.

    Action Items

    1. Don’t panic. There are currently many unknowns, which can be scary, but instead of spiraling you can–

    2. Call your senator. Tell them to vote NO on the budget resolution until those who are illegally fired are reinstated, and there are guardrails in place to revoke financial control to DOGE and return it to Congress, as it says in the Constitution.

    The Senate Democrats have leverage at this moment, because bipartisan effort will be required to pass the bill by Friday, so please let Senators, especially Democratic Senators know it’s past time to stand up for the rule of law.

    3. If you are in DMV area, there will be a protest outside the Department of Education building tomorrow (Thursday the 13th) starting at 1PM. Show up if you can.

    4. Spread the word. Not only will these actions harm children and society overall, but they are illegal. People in power are not above the law in this or any context.

  • Week 7 Updates

    Week 7 Updates

    1. Linda McMahon confirmed, prepares to gut DoED. The Senate confirmed Linda McMahon to her post as Secretary of the Department of Education. Almost immediately she sent out an email to all employees titled, “Our Department’s Final Mission” detailing her desire to emphasize patriotism and vocational skills in American education, while simultaneously dismantling federal oversight. Trump was due to sign an EO aimed at gutting the dept on Thursday, but delayed due to unpopularity. (Keep it up!)
    2. Musk calls people who receive government assistance the “parasite class.” Musk posted on X referring to people who receive Social Security or government assistance as the “parasite class.” The comment comes as DOGE seeks to gut the Social Security Administration and the GOP sets its sights on Medicaid funding.

      Dehumanizing rhetoric, especially referring to people as animals, is Stage 4 in the Ten Stages of Genocide. In the lead up to the Rwandan genocide, the Tutsis were called “cockroaches”; in Germany, Nazis called Jews “vermin,” disabled people “useless eaters,” and more.
    3. Executive Order “Designating English as the Official Language of the US”. The EO declares English the US’s official language and revokes the Clinton EO, “Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency,” Individual agencies can now choose whether they want to provide materials in other languages.

      The changes may have dangerous impacts for those needing medical and legal interpreters, as well as educational impacts for English language learners. Section 504 and the still ADA protect the right to ASL interpreters, but procuring funding may be more complicated, (and the 504 lawsuit even more consequential).
    4. DOGE Takes Aim at Social Security Administration. Workers inside the Social Security Administration (SSA) said DOGE have been controlling their computer access for weeks, including internet access to outside news websites. A new plan aims to cut 12% of the workforce, or about 7,000 people, though more are expected to be driven out by stressors. The SSA workforce was already stretched thin, operating at a 50-year low.

      Musk called social security a “Ponzi scheme” and alleged massive fraud. However, American workers pay into Social Security to receive their retirement benefits, and there is no evidence of widespread fraud. 70 million retired and disabled Americans depend on Social Security benefits. They layoffs may cause payment delays and make it harder to access SSA offices, helplines, and more.
    5. More Attacks on Veterans Affairs, Employment. The Department of Veterans Affairs announced a major overhaul this week, with a goal to lay off approximately 80,000 workers. The plan is sure to disrupt veterans’ healthcare, hospitals, mental health services, and other benefits, as well as lay off many veterans in the process–the federal government is also the number one employer of disabled veterans across many agencies.

      In discussing the potential layoffs, Alina Habbas, one of the President’s lawyers, said, that those veterans affected may not be “fit to have a job at this moment.”
    6. RFK Jr. waffles on vaccines as US Sees 2nd measles death. RFK Jr. Released an Op-Ed on Fox News that appeared to encourage people to get vaccinated against the measles as the outbreak surged in Texas and cases appeared on the east coast. Others say RFK’s views are unchanged, and his mention of “therapeutic treatments” in addition to vaccines is a dog-whistle to antivax followers.

      Under Kennedy, the CDC announced a new large-scale study into vaccines and autism on Friday. The topic has already been thoroughly studied, with no link found. Increased rates of autism in children are attributed to better screenings.
    7. Eugenics and “Race Science” conference to convene in Texas. The 2nd annual “Natal Conference” will take place at University of Texas at Austin’s AT&T Conference Center on March 27-28th. “Natalism” is philosophy that believes in the importance of childbearing for social (or religious) reasons, and thus advocates for a high birthrate.

      Eugenics and “race science” are strains of pseudoscience founded in the belief that humanity can be “improved” through selective breeding. Typically, these ideas are used to reinforce racist stereotypes and ableism. Various far-right and neofascist influencers are slated to speak. Musk has also been invited.
    8. Texas v. Beccera lawsuit continues. Attorneys General continue to use transphobic rhetoric to attack Final Rule and Section 504. Participants continue to say they do not want to dismantle disabled people’s rights, but have not revoked the original filing, which explicitly asks for 504 to be declared unconstitutional (p 37-42).

      504 protects disabled people’s rights in all spaces that receive federal funding, but could have major implications for those needing interpreters in hospitals in light of the new English EO. The next update is due in April.

    Action Items
    Share this info. Disability is often lost in mainstream coverage.

    • Call your Rep. and tell them NO cuts to Medicaid/SNAP and Veterans’ care, and YES to the Dept. of Education Protection Act.
    • Call your Rep. and Senators and remind them that Social Security is *our* money, not Musk’s.
    • Protest U of T’s hosting of the upcoming racist and eugenicist conference.
    • Make sure your vaccines are up to date, especially if you may have received an inactive virus version of the MMR vaccine from 1963-67, which was found to be ineffective.
    • If your state is involved, contact your Attorney General and ask them to withdraw from Texas v. Beccera. Tell them you stand in solidarity with disabled people, and trans folks.