Apple has asked shareholders to vote against a proposal to eliminate its diversity, equity and inclusion programs as tech rivals scale back similar plans ahead of Donald Trump's return to the White House.
The National Center for Public Policy Research, a conservative think tank, is calling on the iPhone maker to halt its DEI efforts, saying it exposes the company to “litigation, reputational and financial risks.” The proposal is scheduled to be voted on at Apple's annual general meeting on February 25th.
in Notice to shareholdersApple's board recommended that investors vote against the proposal. That's because the company already has compliance procedures in place to address any risks, and this proposal is an attempt to “improperly limit Apple's ability to manage its normal business operations, people, and teams.” This is because there is. and business strategy.”
The DEI scheme is a set of measures designed to ensure people from all backgrounds feel supported and included in the workplace, regardless of ethnicity, class, sexuality or gender.
The 2020 killing of George Floyd by a U.S. police officer has prompted companies to examine their policies amid global protests, sparking discussions about how to increase diversity, especially when it comes to race. has attracted worldwide attention.
But the concept has since gained attention from right-wing politicians, with President Trump promising to ban DEI programs in both the government and the private sector.
Last week, Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, announced it was ending its DEI program effective immediately.
“The legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing,” Janelle Gale, Meta's vice president of human resources, said in an internal memo.
Mehta also addressed recent Supreme Court decisions and the “condemned” views some people have on DEI. In 2023, the conservative-controlled U.S. Supreme Court ruled against affirmative action policies, which allow universities to adjust enrollment to the detriment of racial minorities.
The changes come on the heels of Meta's announcement that it would change its internal moderation practices to “get back to our roots on freedom of expression.”
Meta is not alone in opposing diversity programs.
Amazon also announced last week that it would be scaling back its diversity program. In a memo to employees Friday, the company said it is “retiring outdated programs and materials” related to representation and inclusion.
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McDonald's announced last week that it would end some of its leadership and supplier diversity goals, also citing the Supreme Court ruling. The company had introduced goals such as having 45% of its leaders be women in 2021 and having 35% of U.S. corporate leaders come from “underrepresented” groups in the wake of a lawsuit alleging discrimination and sexual harassment. .
In November, Walmart, the world's largest retailer, stopped using the term DEI, eliminated DEI training, and stopped considering race and gender in supplier contract decisions after conservatives threatened a boycott. announced that it would be discontinued.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), a 100-year-old advocacy group, wants to stop what it calls “the second Trump administration's retreat from civil rights enforcement and attacks on efforts to advance racial justice.” announced that it would take legal action to do so.
Before Trump's election in November, the ACLU said, “Despite the fact that much of the country supports efforts to address racial inequality, President Trump has eradicated many of those efforts and thereby “It promises to worsen inequality.”
Other companies have suggested shifting focus from other issues that are likely aligned with progressive politics. Six of the world's largest banks (JPMorgan, Citigroup, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs) have joined the United Nations-sponsored Net Zero Banking Alliance since early December. I left. Activists have criticized the move as a way to fend off attacks from the Trump administration, which is strongly committed to the fossil fuel sector.
