The fast food behemoth McDonald’s will reportedly end some of its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, citing the Supreme Court recently outlawing affirmative action (racial preferences) in college admissions.
In a lengthy open letter signed by McDonald’s senior leadership team, the fast food giant said that while it remains steadfast in its commitment to inclusion, it will be rolling back some of its DEI initiatives. Per the Associated Press:
McDonald’s said Monday it will retire specific goals for achieving diversity at senior leadership levels. It also intends to end a program that encourages its suppliers to develop diversity training and to increase the number of minority group members represented within their own leadership ranks.
McDonald’s said it will also pause “external surveys.” The burger giant didn’t elaborate, but several other companies, including Lowe’s and Ford Motor Co., suspended their participation in an annual survey by the Human Rights Campaign that measures workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ employees.
The company, however, reiterated that its commitment to “inclusion” remains steadfast.
“‘Inclusion’ is one of our core values and in 2024 ‘we opened our doors’ to hundreds of millions of customers and two million crew people from all walks of life. Everyone is welcome under our Golden Arches, and this broad-based appeal is why McDonald’s is one of the world’s most beloved brands,” it said in the open letter.
The shift comes four years after McDonald’s announced a series of DEI initiatives in the wake of employees filing sexual harassment lawsuits and another lawsuit from several black former franchise owners alleging discrimination within the company.
“As a world-leading brand that considers inclusion one of our core values, we will accept nothing less than real, measurable progress in our efforts to lead with empathy, treat people with dignity and respect, and seek out diverse points of view to drive better decision-making,” McDonald’s Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski wrote in a LinkedIn post at the time.
In its open letter, McDonald’s cited the recent Supreme Court ruling that outlawed racial preferences in college admissions (affirmative action) as part of its decision to curtail some of its initiatives.
“We also assessed the shifting legal landscape to anticipate how this ruling may impact corporations such as McDonald’s. And finally, we benchmarked our approach to other companies who are also re-evaluating their own programs,” it said.
Several major American companies have been rolling back DEI policies in the past year, a move that only accelerated with President-elect Donald Trump’s sweeping victory over Vice President Kamala Harris. As Breitbart News reported in November, Walmart announced “it would remove sexual and transgender products that were reportedly marketed toward children and will review grants to LGBTQI+ events to avoid funding sexualized content targeting children.”
“In October, Toyota announced it would no longer sponsor LGBTQ parades and events and will no longer make efforts to promote DEI,” noted the report. “The automaker will no longer participate in the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index and other corporate surveys.”
“Many other major corporations, including Harley-Davidson, Lowe’s, Ford Motor Co., Tractor Supply, and Jack Daniel’s, have also left the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index,” it added.
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