Corporate office buildings

๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐—ฝ๐˜‚๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป๐˜€ ๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ธ๐—ฒ: ๐—–๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฝ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€ f๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ฒ ๐—ฎ ๐——๐—ฒ๐—ณ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐— ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐——๐—˜๐—œ ๐—ฃ๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐—ด๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—บ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐˜€

In an executive order issued on 20 January, President Donald Trump ordered the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion programs within the federal government. Government agencies are instructed to no longer consider diversity in hiring and to exclude DEI training in employee development programmes. A day later, Trump intensified his campaign against diversity programmes by urging the private sector to participate in this initiative.

This recent and now escalated backlash towards DEI programmes has resulted in companies such as Meta, McDonalds, Boeing, Ford Motor Co, John Deere and others announcing measures to either roll back or eliminate DEI initiatives and in some cases also cease support of cultural awareness events.

Fortunately, there are examples of sincerity in action! Some companies have issued public statements reaffirming their commitment to diversity and inclusion, despite the federal changes. Costco has refused to abandon its DEI policies. The company’s board of directors unanimously advised shareholders to reject a proposal from the conservative think tank, the National Center for Public Policy Research. The board announced that it believes their commitment to an enterprise rooted in respect and inclusion is appropriate and necessary.
Appleโ€™s board also urged shareholders to reject a proposal from the same think tank. Delta Airlines said it remains committed to DEI.

The upcoming months will show which companies stand firm in their commitment to greater inclusion. This is a defining moment for company boards. The international community and the broader workforce will be watching to see which (global) companies will choose an ethical path.

JPC International