Apple's shareholders voted to continue the tech giant's diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives on Tuesday, rejecting a proposal from the National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR) to end them. Predictably, President Donald Trump is mad about it.
The NCPPR's attempt to abolish Apple's DEI initiatives was shot down in a landslide during the company's annual shareholder meeting this week, garnering only 210.45 million votes compared to 8.84 billion against it. In its proposal, the self-described conservative think tank claimed that DEI programs pose "litigation, reputational and financial risks," and that their mere existence potentially breaches companies' duties to shareholders.
Apple's shareholders clearly didn't find its NCPPR's arguments compelling though, ultimately following the board's recommendation that the proposal be rejected.
"The proposal is unnecessary as Apple already has a well‑established compliance program and the proposal inappropriately attempts to restrict Apple’s ability to manage its own ordinary business operations, people and teams, and business strategies," Apple wrote in its proxy statement. "Our Board and management maintain active oversight of legal and regulatory risks and compliance for our global business."
Further responding to NCPPR's proposal, Apple CEO Tim Cook stated that the company has "never had quotas or targets," but that its DEI programs are key to its corporate culture guided by "dignity and respect for everyone."
"Our strength has always come from hiring the very best people and then providing a culture of collaboration," said Cook.
Despite Apple shareholders' decision to retain the company's DEI programs, Cook did acknowledge that changes in legislation may force adjustments to its policies regardless. But for now, Apple's commitments to equity remain in place.
"As the legal landscape around these issues evolves, we may need to make some changes to comply," Cook stated. "We’ll continue to work together to create a culture of belonging and we’ll remain committed to the values that have always made us who we are."
As of 2022, Apple reported that almost 65 percent of its global workforce was male, while approximately 42 percent are white, 30 percent are Asian, 15 percent are Hispanic/Latinx, and just 9 percent are Black.
The NCPPR has sent similar anti-DEI proposals to over two dozen companies according to the Washington Post, including Airbnb and General Motors. Costco's shareholders voted on its proposal from the NCPPR during their own meeting in January, where it also failed.
Trump criticises Apple's DEI shareholder vote
Of course, Trump was not pleased by the results of Apple's shareholder vote. The president railed against Apple's decision to adhere to its shareholders' decision on his social media platform Truth Social, continuing his aggressive attacks on DEI programs.
"APPLE SHOULD GET RID OF DEI RULES, NOT JUST MAKE ADJUSTMENTS TO THEM," wrote Trump (emphasis original). "DEI WAS A HOAX THAT HAS BEEN VERY BAD FOR OUR COUNTRY. DEI IS GONE!!!"
Interestingly, Trump's close ally Elon Musk recently took to X to stress the sanctity of the shareholder vote in December. This was in response to a judge ruling that Tesla's shareholders couldn't reinstate Musk's $55.8 billion compensation package after the court had already ruled it unlawful.
Dismantling diversity, equity, and inclusion has been one of Trump's primary concerns since his inauguration, with one of his first acts being to issue an executive order terminating all federal DEI programs. While this order only directly impacted government entities, tech giants have also been falling in line with Trump's directive of their own volition. After all, the U.S government is far more likely to grant lucrative contracts to companies whose values align with its own.
Meta preemptively scrapped its DEI initiatives just prior to Trump's inauguration in January, altering its Hateful Conduct policy to be more friendly to divisive and discriminatory content. Similarly, Amazon reportedly told employees it was "winding down" some DEI programs, and scrubbed mention of diversity and inclusion from its recent annual report. Google also got rid of its diverse hiring targets earlier this month — as well as deleted its pledge against using AI for weapons or surveillance.
