The Trump administration has a new way to pressure companies to ditch DEI

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🗞️ Driving the news: The Trump administration, via FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, is pressuring companies to abandon diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies by threatening to block mergers involving firms that promote them
• Carr argues such policies violate the FCC’s “public interest” standard and called DEI “invidious discrimination”
• The move signals an unprecedented shift in how federal regulatory power is used to influence corporate HR strategies

🔭 The context: Traditionally, the FCC has evaluated mergers based on competition and consumer impact, but this marks the first time HR policies like DEI are being used as a regulatory criterion
• This comes amid broader Trump administration efforts to dismantle DEI initiatives, with executive orders and DOJ threats backing enforcement
• Companies like Meta, McDonald’s, and Goldman Sachs have already scaled back DEI programmes in response

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: Though not directly environmental, this policy could undermine corporate ESG efforts, where DEI is a core pillar alongside sustainability
• If companies backtrack on social governance, it could weaken broader commitments to inclusive climate action and ethical supply chains
• A chilling effect on DEI also risks stalling progress on environmental justice in marginalised communities

⏭️ What's next: Pending mergers, such as Paramount with Skydance and Verizon’s acquisition of Frontier, could be jeopardised unless companies alter their DEI strategies
• The lack of clarity around what qualifies as “illegal DEI” may lead to widespread policy rollbacks
• Legal challenges and corporate pushback are likely in the coming months

💬 One quote: “This is a get-right with the chairman. And he never defines what get-right means.” – Tom Wheeler, former FCC Chair

📈 One stat: More than 50 major U.S. companies, including Meta, McDonald’s, and Goldman Sachs, have scaled back or revised their DEI policies since 2023 amid rising political and legal pressure

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See here detailed sustainability performance of companies like Meta, McDonald’s, and Goldman