Walmart store exterior
Walmart is one of the latest American companies to announce a departure from its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Earlier in November, Walmart confirmed that it would no longer hold diversity trainings or give priority to diverse suppliers and would also be removing the words “diversity” and “DEI” from its company language altogether.
Now, the company is receiving widespread pushback from attorneys general in 13 states in addition to more than 30 shareholders representing $266 billion in assets who are demanding answers to Walmart’s rollback of DEI efforts and asking them to reconsider the decision.
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Earlier this week top prosecutors from 13 states joined together to sign a letter addressing Doug McMillon, CEO of Walmart. In the letter the attorneys general ask why Walmart made the decision to roll back its diversity policies and how the company plans to protect civil rights in the workplace.
“Threats to boycott, sue or otherwise negatively impact Walmart’s bottom line may well have contributed to your decision to walk away from your commitments to DEI. But we are concerned that Walmart failed to consider the other side – the customers and employees that will be alienated by this departure,” the attorneys general stated in the letter.
Additionally, Walmart shareholders are requesting a meeting with the company’s senior leadership and board to discuss the recent shifts in policy. The group accused Walmart leadership of yielding to pressure from anti-DEI groups and says it has raised concerns about the risks of discrimination for over 30 years.
Investors have emphasized that historical data shows the financial benefits of promoting DEI and says Walmart has not yet provided financial or business justifications for recent changes in policy.
While Walmart is currently the nation’s largest private-employer of women, Black and African Americans, Hispanic and LatinX, and people of color according to a 2023 report of culture, diversity, equity and inclusion this large shift in policy could have a substantial impact on who is employed in the future.
Walmart now joins other large American corporations such as Google, Meta, Microsoft, Zoom and McDonald’s who have all similarly scaled back or reassessed their commitments to DEI initiatives in the past year.
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