Apple’s board of directors has recommended that investors vote against a shareholder proposal to abolish the company’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, according to a proxy filing. The proposal, submitted by the conservative think-tank National Centre for Public Policy Research, argued that DEI programs pose litigation, reputational, and financial risks to companies, citing recent Supreme Court decisions.
Apple responded that it has a well-established compliance program and deemed the proposal unnecessary, criticizing it as an inappropriate attempt to micromanage the company’s business strategy. “Apple is an equal-opportunity employer and does not discriminate in recruiting, hiring, training, or promoting on any basis protected by law,” the company stated in the filing.
The news was first reported by TechCrunch. Several major companies, including Meta and Amazon, are winding down their diversity programs ahead of Republican Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency, as conservative opposition to such initiatives grows louder. Conservative groups have denounced DEI programs and threatened to sue companies over them, emboldened by a 2023 US Supreme Court ruling that struck down affirmative action in university admissions decisions.
These changes reflect how some of America’s largest businesses are reacting to a broader conservative backlash against diversity initiatives, which intensified after widespread protests following the police killings of George Floyd and other Black Americans in 2020.