Walmart is rolling back DEI policies, becoming the latest US company to join the growing trend
‘The Bottom Line’ team is considering it as other companies look to distance themselves from politics.
FIRST ON FOX: Walmart is making a series of changes to its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies, becoming the latest in a growing list of large companies to stage a so-called “awakening”.
Anti-resurrection activist and filmmaker Robby Starbuck, who has been leading a campaign to expose the policies of the big companies in the wake, said on X Monday that he had warned Walmart executives last week that he would be doing a story about the “resurgence” of the retail giant.
“Instead,” Starbuck said, “we had productive conversations to find solutions.”
Walmart is the latest major company to reverse its DEI policies following activist pressure. (by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Starbuck outlined the changes Walmart has agreed to make, including working to remove sexual and transgender products that are inappropriately advertised to children, and revising grants for Pride events to avoid funding sexual content directed at children.
Walmart clarified that the changes were several years in the making and were not the result of a conversation with Starbucks.
TOYOTA FOLLOWS PROGRESSIVE CORPORATE POLICIES AND DELI PROGRAMS
Walmart confirmed to FOX Business that it plans to change the way it monitors products within its marketplace and review grant funding.
The company said some products that breached its policy were removed, such as chest binders – products designed to flatten the chest – when marketed to children.
The company also confirmed that it will review all grants, especially for public events, to ensure that they promote a suitable environment for children. However, Walmart will continue to support Pride celebrations.
| A ticker | Security | Finally | Change | change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMT | Company WALMART INC. | 89.46 | -0.97 |
-1.08% |
The company also decided not to expand the Center for Racial Equality that it launched in 2020 as a five-year initiative, and will drop the terms “LatinX” and “DEI” entirely from official communications. Instead it will focus on the word “yours” for all partners and customers.
CATERPILLAR MAKES POLICY CHANGES FOR ANOTHER COMPANY DEI ROLLBACK
Walmart has also joined a number of companies in recent months – including Ford and John Deere – to end their participation in the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index, an annual survey and report used to measure “policies, practices and benefits related to gay, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, men and women, transgender and (LGBTQ+) workers.”
Walmart confirmed it was notified about the Starbuck’s video last week. Walmart rarely comments on politics.
A customer is shopping at a Walmart store. (Reuters Photos/Daniel Becerril / Reuters)
In a statement sent to FOX Business, Walmart said it is “committed to change along with our partners and customers across America.”
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“We’ve been on a journey and we know we’re not perfect, but every decision comes from a place of wanting to foster a sense of belonging, opening doors of opportunity for all our partners, customers and suppliers and being a Walmart for everyone,” the company said.
Starbuck’s is taking a break from championing the changes announced by Walmart, telling FOX Business, “Walmart is the single largest employer in the United States. Taking the spotlight from Walmart has both downstream effects for suppliers and sets the tone for American business.”
“Changing the standard operating policy of a nearly $1 billion company is a difficult feat that many have tried to accomplish but no one has been able to do until now,” he continued. “It speaks to the strength and scale of our movement to end public awareness and how I have served as a megaphone for the concerns of your average consumer.”
Starbuck added, “I will not stop until resurrection is a thing of the past.”
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