Google has become the latest U.S. company to scale back some of its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
It comes after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2023 banned affirmative action in university admissions.
The decision has been cited by other U.S. companies that have stripped back their diversity programs and policies.
According to U.S. media, Google also cited President Donald Trump’s recent moves to end DEI initiatives in “the federal workforce”.
DEI
Google created newin 2020. It came amid a wave of protests following the killings of Black Americans George Floyd and Breonna Taylor by white police officers.
The company committed to improving “leadership representation of underrepresented groups by 30% by 2025,” among other changes to hiring.
As reported by the Wall Street Journal and The Verge, Google told its employees this week it will scale back these policies.
Going forward, the company said it will “hire the best people” and “treat everyone fairly”.
The tech giant said that “as a federal contractor,” the move aligns the company with the Trump administration’s stance and the 2023 ruling.
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It has not clarified whether this will apply to its Australian operations.
Trump
On his first day in the White House, Trump signed an executive order to remove “illegal and immoral discrimination programs, going by the name ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’” from the U.S. Government.
The order mandated a review of all existing federal employment practices and training programs.
Trump said Americans deserve to be treated with “equal dignity and respect” and rewarded for “individual initiative, skills, performance, and hard work.”
Broader shift
Google is the latest in ato scrap or modify their hiring practices following the 2023 court decision.
Last year, McDonald’s said it would no longer work towards specific targets of diverse representation in U.S. leadership positions, citing a “shifting legal landscape”.
Walmart and Harley Davidson both recently pulled out of an annual survey rating companies based on their inclusion of LGBTQIA+ employees, conducted by Human Rights Watch.
