Corporate Cowardly Lions and the backlash against diversity, equity and inclusion

Enlightened employers have practiced diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) since Ebenezer Scrooge was visited by four spirits.
Enterprises have long succeeded by recruiting workers of all backgrounds and talents and treating them with unfailing respect.
The modern DEI movement can be traced to the murder of George Floyd, a Black man, by a White police officer in Minneapolis in 2020.
Ford Motor reacted to the tragedy by ramping up its DEI programs “to enable social mobility and economic success in the African American community,” in the words of Ford’s then-CEO, Jim Hackett.
DEI was soon embraced by other Fortune 500 companies that adopted DEI principles of building creative multidimensional workforces.
All movements foment a backlash, however.
Late last month, Ford told its employees that it was pulling back from its DEI initiatives.
Ford joined a growing number of blue-chip companies that have caved this year to anti-DEI pressure.
Molson Coors, Deere & Co., Jack Daniels maker Brown-Forman, Harley-Davidson, and retailer Lowe’s Cos. have de-emphasized or scrapped their DEI programs.
Brown-Forman, for one, had been practicing DEI for almost two decades.
The companies are retreating from DEI under pressure from anti-DEI activists led by a conservative social influencer named Robby Starbuck and from America First Legal, which launches lawsuits and files regulatory complaints alleging that DEI discriminates against certain groups.
The DEI backlash began to manifest itself this summer. But Bud Light and Nike suffered blowback last year after employing transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney as a spokesperson.
Early this year, Chip Wilson, founder of Lululemon Athletica, publicly accused the Vancouver apparel retailer, from which he has long been estranged, of overdoing its DEI efforts.
And on his social media platform, X, formerly Twitter, Elon Musk suggested, without providing evidence, that DEI might have played a role in the January blowout of a door plug on an Alaska Airlines flight.
“Do you want to fly in an airplane where they prioritized DEI hiring over your safety?” Musk wrote at the time. “People will die due to DEI.”
This episode is highly instructive on the power of social media and the fear of controversy at the most ostensibly powerful companies.
When they were targeted by Robby Starbuck’s online attacks, the companies above and others influenced by them weakened or eliminated their commitments to equal opportunity for women, visible minorities, members of the LGBTQ community and others who traditionally suffer discrimination.
That means less or no emphasis on fairness in hiring, pay and promotions of employees beyond what is legally required, on purchasing from minority owned suppliers, and tying executive pay to achievement of DEI goals.
Prior to the backlash, DEI initiatives were regarded as sound management practice.
As long as women and minority groups are underrepresented and underpaid in the workforce, that’s indeed what DEI is. And at this time of skilled labour shortages in major economies, DEI would seem to be an imperative.
A landmark 2023 survey by global consultancy Ernst & Young (EY) of 5,000 workers in the U.S., U.K., Germany, Singapore, and India found that 97 per cent of respondents detected forms of discrimination in their workplaces.
The same survey reported that nearly three-quarters of Gen Z respondents, destined to dominate the workforce in coming years, insist that their employers adhere to DEI practices.
“DEI remains a key workplace expectation across all generations and is a competitive advantage,” says Karyn Twaronite, EY global vice chair of diversity, equity and inclusiveness.
Starbuck sees it differently.
“DEI is essentially a Trojan horse for left-wing policies,” he says. “DEI actually encourages a certain kind of racism.”
It is a pity that worker well-being has fallen victim to America’s periodic culture wars. And it’s just short of amazing that Starbuck, 35, a music-video producer turned social-media influencer, can dictate policy to the large and venerable enterprises cited in this column.
Those firms have a combined $360 billion (U.S.) in revenues but scare as easily as the Cowardly Lion.
Starbuck is claiming victory to his 500,000 followers on X and says he is targeting more firms.
But the DEI furor might be something of a blessing, says Amber Fairbanks, portfolio manager at the London, U.K.-based Impax Asset Management. She notes that some of the corporate DEI activity in recent years has been superficial posturing.
Employers can benefit from reassessing the merits and shortcomings of their DEI initiatives, she told Bloomberg News last month.
 “Companies that see the value of (DEI) are not going to change their policies based on a few news stories,” Fairbanks said.
In the meantime, though, prominent corporations have shown a lack of resolve on DEI that gives reason to doubt all their commitments — to shareholders, employees, and customers.
“Irony” was once defined as being concerned about something but not enough to do anything about it. Sadly, that appears to be the case here.