Costco's board of directors urged shareholders to vote against efforts that would limit the company's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Annual Notice to Shareholders To eradicate “discriminatory practices” from the National Center for Public Policy Research.
The conservative think tank assesses and releases a report on the risks of maintaining its current DEI role, policies and goals amid a wave of companies reducing all references to organizational frameworks. I asked Costco to do so.
Earlier this year, Lowe's, Harley-Davidson and Walmart announced they were eliminating DEI practices after facing similar backlash from conservative groups, despite opposition from some lawmakers.
“It's clear that DEI poses litigation, reputational, and financial risks to companies, and therefore to shareholders,” right-wing groups told the company. wrote in his proposal, citing a 2016 Supreme Court ruling that overturned affirmative action in universities. That reasoning.
The National Center for Public Policy Research said Costco's “rebranding” of its DEI title to “People and Communities” does not protect the company from alleged risks related to the initiative's “discriminatory practices.” Ta.
“Costco, with its 310,000 employees, has at least 20 employees who could be victims of this type of unlawful discrimination because they are white, Asian, male, or straight,” the group said. “There is a high possibility that there are 10,000,000 people,” he said, arguing that the demographics could cost Costco billions of dollars in lawsuits.
In its response to the proposal, Costco accused the group of “burdening” businesses through “policy bias,” and said the proposal was not aimed at addressing financial risks and instead focused on DEI. He said the aim was to crush the initiative.
“The proponent's broader agenda is not to reduce the company's risks, but to eliminate its diversity commitments,” the board added.
The annual general meeting, where shareholders will vote on the matter, will be held in late January.
The Hill has reached out to Costco and the National Center for Public Policy Research for further comment.
