Target ends diversity plan amid Trump order

Discount store chain Target said on Friday that it would join rival Walmart and a number of other prominent American brands in scaling back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that have come under attack from conservative activists and, as of this week, the White House.

The Minneapolis-based retailer said the changes to its "Belonging at the Bullseye” strategy would include ending a programme it established to help Black employees build meaningful careers, improve the experience of Black shoppers and to promote Black-owned businesses following the police killing of George Floyd in 2020.

Target, which operates nearly 2,000 stores nationwide and employs more than 400,000 people, said it already had planned to end the racial programme this year. The company said that it also would conclude the diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, goals it previously set in three-year cycles.

Staying in step with 'evolving landscape'

The goals included hiring and promoting more women and members of racial minority groups, and recruiting more diverse suppliers, including businesses owned by people of colour, women, LGBTQ+ people, veterans and people with disabilities.

Target has long been a fierce corporate advocate for the rights of Black and LGBTQ+ people. In a memo to employees, Kiera Fernandez, Target’s chief community impact and equity officer, described the DEI decisions as a "next chapter” in the company's decades-long process to create "inclusive work and guest environments that welcome all.”

"Many years of data, insights, listening and learning have been shaping this next chapter in our strategy,” Fernandez wrote in the memo, which Target shared on Friday. "And as a retailer that serves millions of consumers every day, we understand the importance of staying in step with the evolving external landscape, now and in the future.”

There's no doubt the US civil rights landscape has undergone a massive transformation in the five years since much of corporate America adopted DEI goals in response to the Black Lives Matter protests that followed Floyd's death in Minneapolis.

A 2023 US Supreme Court decision that outlawed affirmative action in college admissions emboldened conservative groups to bring or threaten lawsuits targeting corporate initiatives such as employee resource groups and hiring practices that prioritise historically marginalised groups.

Joining Walmart, McDonald's

Walmart, McDonald’s, Ford, Harley-Davison and John Deere are among the well-known consumer brands that reduced or phased out their DEI commitments in recent months.

President Donald Trump this week signalled his administration's agreement with conservatives who argue that policies designed to increase minority representation by considering factors such as race, gender and sexual orientation are unconstitutional.

On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order aimed at ending DEI programmes across the federal government. The order calls for revoking all DEI mandates, policies, preferences and activities, along with the review and revision of existing employment practices, union contracts, and training policies or programmes.

Some firms resist

Still, some prominent companies have resisted public pressure to retreat from their diversity plans. On Thursday, Costco shareholders rejected a proposal urging the wholesale club operator to evaluate any risks posed by its diversity, equity and inclusion practices.

According to preliminary results shared by Costco executives, more than 98% of shares voted against the proposal submitted by a conservative think tank based in Washington.

Costco’s board of directors had recommended a no vote.

Apple's board and the CEO of JPMorgan bank also have expressed a commitment to preserving their companies' DEI activities.

Trailblazing firm

Unlike some of the companies retooling or retiring their diversity initiatives, Target's work to build a more inclusive workforce predated 2020, and the company also was long seen as a trailblazer with respect to LGBTQ+ inclusion.

But the employee memo shared said Target no longer would participate in surveys designed to gauge the effectiveness of its actions, including an annual index compiled by the Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBTQ+ rights organisation. Target said it would further evaluate corporate partnerships to ensure they’re connected directly to business objectives, but declined to share details.

Getting corporations to withdraw from the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index and to stop sponsoring Pride activities have been goals of DEI opponents.

Avoiding a backlash

Steering clear of a backlash from conservative customers and organisations is something that Target has tried to navigate for a while.

As transgender rights became a more prominent issue in 2016, the company declared that "inclusivity is a core belief at Target” and said it supported transgender employees and customers using whichever restroom or fitting room "corresponds with their gender identity.”

But after some customers threatened to boycott Target stores, the company said that more stores would make available a single-toilet bathroom with a door that could be locked.

In 2023, Target removed some of its Pride Month merchandise after online complaints and in-store confrontations that the retailer said threatened employees’ well-being.

The company decided last year not to stock Pride Month products at every US store.