Harvard bows to Trump and will hand over the employment data of thousands of its employees

Harvard announced Tuesday that it will comply with the demands of President Donald Trump's administration to provide employment verification forms for thousands of university employees, although for now it has refused to share the records of those working in roles reserved exclusively for students.

The university informed its employees in an email that in early July it had received a notice of inspection and a subpoena from the Department of Homeland Security.

The request seeks to review I-9 forms and supporting documentation, which are used by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to verify the identity and employment authorization of individuals hired in the country.

Harvard acknowledged that federal law allows the government to access these records as part of its authority to oversee compliance with labor and immigration regulations by U.S. employers.

However, the institution indicated that it is evaluating whether sharing the records of employees in student positions complies with privacy requirements established by other regulations.

This legal conflict is part of a dispute between Harvard and the Trump administration, after the government froze billions of dollars in federal funds intended for the university. Harvard filed a lawsuit against the government earlier this year to recover those resources.

The freezing of federal funds to universities has become a pressure mechanism by the White House. Trump has threatened to cut funding to educational institutions that promote pro-Palestinian protests, climate policies, transgender rights, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.

These issues, considered central by many campuses, have been the target of criticism in the context of a more restrictive approach by the federal government toward left-wing activism at universities.

According to the New York Times on Monday, Harvard would be willing to spend up to 500 million dollars to reach a settlement with the government and end the legal dispute, a figure significantly higher than the approximately 200 million recently agreed to be paid by Columbia University in a similar negotiation.

Talks are ongoing, and Harvard has been reluctant to accept the appointment of an external supervisor as part of a possible agreement.

Meanwhile, the Department of Justice intensified its scrutiny of other universities. On Monday, it launched an investigation against Duke University and its law journal, Duke Law Journal, to determine whether the editor selection process favors candidates from minority communities, which constitutes a violation of federal civil rights law.

A day later, the government notified Duke that it will freeze 109 million dollars in federal funds. In parallel, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) was accused of violating federal civil rights legislation, although both Duke and UCLA declined to comment immediately.