Ritika Janiya
Recently, Ford Motor Company stepped back from the company’s commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The decision is trending and may be a bellwether for the changing corporate behaviors on DEI.
This latest decision by Ford represents a remarkable volte-face by the firm. It was only four years ago that, following the tragic death of George Floyd in 2020, Ford proudly boasted it was committed to an inclusive workplace. Then, they promised to lead from the front and ensured their workers would work in a culture of equity and fairness. Oh, how things have changed at Ford.
Earlier this week, Ford’s chief executive, Jim Farley, wrote an internal e-mail to all employees saying that the company had withdrawn from the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index-a survey that measures corporations as to how well they support LGBTQ+ rights. Always scoring perfectly in past ratings, this was a huge change in Ford’s direction.
Aside from pulling out from the survey, Ford is also ending its quotas related to minority-owned dealerships and suppliers. This would mean that the company will no longer have specific goals in dealing with businesses owned by people of diverse backgrounds. Ford will also be rethinking its corporate sponsorships, which might upset some advocacy groups.
This is part of a broader trend: Other companies reassess or even abandon their DEI programs. For instance, Harley-Davidson, the well-known motorcycle maker, announced in April it has stopped all DEI-related activities. Harley-Davidson also will be pulling out of the Human Rights Campaign’s scoring index and erasing socially motivated content from its employee training.
In similar vein, companies like John Deere & Co and Tractor Supply have axed their programs on DEI this summer. Similarly, home improvement retailer Lowe’s and the Kentucky-based Brown-Forman, maker of Jack Daniels whisky, have joined in to disband their diversity initiatives.
What’s driving this trend? Perhaps one reason is a growing realization that DEI policies are very hard to do well. These programs can sometimes create divides rather than foster unity as they focus on different identities and characteristics. Critics say focusing on diversity can sometimes obscure other important aspects of workplace culture and productivity.
Another such candidate is conservative activist Robby Starbuck. He has been pretty vocal against the DEI initiatives, especially after the recent Supreme Court decision relating to affirmative action about US colleges. Most of his campaign is on social media; he says companies should not take ideological stances but rather stick to their core business.
If anything, investors’ reaction suggests that, again, the rush to embrace DEI might have had more to do with faddism than it did with real-world benefits. The share prices of those companies which have moved away from DEI programs have not faced any disturbances, meaning that the push toward diversity was not as crucial to investors as perhaps thought.
As Ford and Harley-Davidson revisit their approach to DEI, it begs the question-what’s the future of such policies? Does everyone go in this direction, or does one get a new effort to push for more diversity-friendly practices? The shifting contours of corporate policy on the matter suggest the conversation over DEI is a long way from over.
In all, Ford dialed it back on its DEI commitments as part of a broader trend of companies reassessing diversity policies. Though the future of DEI initiatives remains undetermined, there is one thing for sure: the conversation going around diversity, equity, and inclusion is changing.
