McDonald’s became the latest company to revise or ditch its diversity programs after a Supreme Court ruling made clear such programs violate federal law.
Key Facts:
– The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision outlawed certain college affirmative action programs.
– McDonald’s will end specific targets for leadership diversity and pause some external surveys.
– The company still pledges to maintain a diverse workforce, suppliers, and franchisees.
– Similar shifts have occurred at Walmart, John Deere, and Harley-Davidson following the ruling.
The Rest of The Story:
In a letter to employees and franchisees, McDonald’s leadership explained that the Supreme Court’s decision and the example of other companies prompted its latest move.
The burger chain plans to phase out diversity targets for senior leadership and halt a supplier program that asked for leadership diversity among vendors.
Despite rolling back these measures, McDonald’s maintains it has already made significant progress with it’s DEI program.
The company claims 30% of its U.S. leaders come from underrepresented groups.
The company also claims to have reached gender pay equity in 2021 and says it remains committed to fostering an inclusive environment.
BIG news: @McDonalds is ending a number of woke DEI policies today. Now let me tell you what’s changing and how it happened.
3 days ago I told McDonald’s that I’d be doing a story on woke policies there. Today they’ve announced the following changes:
• Hiring: They will END… pic.twitter.com/bvFglf6pxw
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) January 6, 2025
Commentary:
McDonald’s is doing the right thing by pulling back on DEI programs, which many argue run counter to federal non-discrimination laws.
The Biden administration seemed unwilling to enforce those laws, but the incoming Trump administration appears ready to act, prompting businesses to make changes now.
This signals that companies are moving away from approaches that treat people differently based on their background and instead focus on hiring the best people for the job.
The Bottom Line:
McDonald’s clearly sees the new legal and political environment as a reason to re-evaluate its diversity strategy, sort of like rats jumping off of a sinking ship.
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It’s time for every major company to take a similar step. America will never become great again until companies begin to hire again exclusively on merit.
Replace DEI with MEI, merit, excellence and initiative and American companies can become great again.