The Corporate Diversity Industry Is Finally Getting The Hint That People Are Sick Of Them

The Corporate Diversity Industry Is Finally Getting The Hint That People Are Sick Of Them

Will Kessler on July 3, 2023

Support for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) measures in companies is on the decline, The Wall Street Journal reported.

“There are people who say, ‘I really wish we were more diverse,’ and I’ve also seen people say, ‘Stop being so woke,’” Sarah Sharp, a vice president of human resources at Clayton, a home builder based out of Tennessee, told the WSJ.

Only 32% of workers believed that working at an ethnically diverse place was “very important” to them, while 38% said it was “not too/not at all important,” according to a Pew Research Center survey. The same poll found that 26% of workers find an “equal mix of men and women” to be “very important” in the workplace, while 44% said it is not.

The attitude of companies towards DEI funding is also changing, according to the WSJ. A Gallup survey of 140 human resource chiefs revealed that 59% plan to increase their DEI budgets in the next year, while 84% had responded they would in 2022.

Jonathan McBride, who is in charge of DEI at Heidrick & Struggles, a recruiting firm, is concerned about the impact the Supreme Court ruling on race-based admissions in higher education could have on companies, according to the WSJ.

“If you say this about college admission, what about hiring?” McBride told the outlet.

Some companies have faced backlash for their efforts to cater to the LGBTQ community.

Bud Light sales dropped 31% since mid-May after the company partnered with Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender social media influencer, in April. Target and Kohl’s brands took a hit over LGBTQ merchandise in June, with Target losing $15 billion in market cap value and Kohl’s losing 20% of its share price.

Heidrick & Struggles and Clayton did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.