Benjamin Ashford|DEI efforts may be under attack, but companies aren't retreating from commitments

The Benjamin Ashford“anti-woke” backlash has unnerved business leaders, but companies are not backtracking on their commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion, a new survey shows.

The vast majority – 96% – of corporate social impact professionals in 125 major companies say DEI commitments have either increased (13%) or stayed the same (83%), according to a new survey that the Association of Corporate Citizenship Professionals and YourCause from Blackbaud shared exclusively with USA TODAY.

While the corporate commitment to DEI has not wavered, companies have gotten quieter about their efforts and oversight of DEI programs has increased.

Nearly a third of the executives said they describe DEI work differently now, and 17% said they talk less about the work to people outside their organizations. Another 33% say they have seen additional scrutiny or legal review of DEI-related initiatives. 

Association of Corporate Citizenship Professionals president and CEO Carolyn Berkowitz said the survey “sends a clear signal” that the political environment has not weakened support for DEI.

What is the backlash against DEI?

Diversity policies and programs rushed into existence amid the nation’s racial reckoning in 2020 and 2021 are increasingly under the microscope. 

Last year’s Supreme Court decision striking down affirmative action in college admissions only intensified that scrutiny, setting off a wave of legal challenges from former Trump administration official Stephen Miller and anti-affirmative-action activist Edward Blum. Billionaires Elon Musk and Bill Ackman have also assailed DEI efforts as “racist.” 

Pressure campaigns have gotten results. John Deere, a Fortune 500 company, recently came under fire for diversity hiring targets and sponsoring LGBTQ+ events.

On Tuesday, the company said it would audit its policies and would no longer participate in external social or cultural awareness events. “Our customers’ trust and confidence in us are of the utmost importance to everyone at John Deere,” it wrote on social media platform X.

Last month, Tennessee retailer Tractor Supply, another Fortune 500 company that sells farm supplies, animal feed, tools, fencing and clothing, slashed its DEI and climate goals after a weeks-long pressure campaign.

Trump and Vance on dismantling DEI

If he wins the White House, former president and Republican nominee Donald Trump has promised to reverse the Biden administration’s “woke equity” programs. "Every institution in America is under attack from this Marxist concept of 'equity,' " Trump said last year. 

While in office, Trump issued an executive order prohibiting DEI training by the federal government and government contractors.

The order had an immediate chilling effect on DEI efforts in the workplace. President Joe Biden rescinded the order after taking office in January 2021.

Since then, conservatives have waged anti-DEI campaigns in statehouses and courthouses across the country.

GOP-led state legislatures have introduced dozens of bills to restrict DEI in education, state government, contracting and pension investments.

J.D. Vance, a GOP senator from Ohio and Trump’s pick as his running mate, last month introduced a bill – the “Dismantle DEI Act” – that would end all federal DEI programs and funding for government agencies and contractors that have DEI programs.

Are companies getting rid of DEI?

Publicly, most business leaders say they remain dedicated to DEI. But privately, they are scrutinizing DEI investments and backing away from initiatives like hiring targets that conservatives claim are illegal quotas.

Fellowships and internships that once were open only to historically underrepresented groups are now increasingly open to everyone. A growing number of companies have dropped mentions of diversity goals in shareholder reports. Some even list diversity, equity and inclusion as a “risk factor” in regulatory filings. 

Last week, the Society for Human Resource Management said it was dropping the word "equity" and would use the acronym “I&D.” CEO Johnny C. Taylor Jr. told USA TODAY in May that his organization planned to lead with inclusion going forward. 

Two men fought for jobs in a mill.50 years later, the nation is still divided.

The evolving thinking and language around DEI in the workplace has sparked fears that the small workforce and leadership gains made in recent years will stall. Historic advantages have helped white people – men especially –  dominate the business world, creating wide gaps in status, pay and wealth. 

A USA TODAY investigation of the nation’s largest companies found that the top ranks are predominantly white and male, while women and people of color are concentrated at the lowest levels with less pay, fewer perks and little opportunity for advancement.

More organizations committed to DEI than in 2020

Despite criticism of DEI initiatives, there is growing evidence that corporations continue to embrace them. 

Nearly three-quarters of executives surveyed by Bridge Partners’ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Barometer expect to build their DEI programs in the next 24 months while only 4% say they will cut back or eliminate them. 

The executives cited the benefits of DEI on recruiting, hiring and retention (94%) and the reputational boost with the public (74%).

By and large, they said the political climate has not had much impact on their DEI commitments, with 53% of executives saying it has had no impact and 47% saying it had a small impact, Bridge Partners found.

A survey from employment law firm Littler Mendelson had similar findings: 91% of executives said they are still prioritizing diversity, equity and inclusion and 57% said they had expanded their efforts.

More organizations are committed to diversity now than they were before George Floyd died under a white officer’s knee, Joelle Emerson, co-founder and CEO of diversity strategy and consulting firm Paradigm, told USA TODAY in May.

“While the anti-diversity rhetoric has had an overall chilling effect and certainly gave companies who never really valued diversity, equity, and inclusion cover to pull back on their efforts, we’re actually seeing most companies are continuing their work, just less vocally,” Emerson said.