McDonald's rolls back diversity goals

Fast food giant McDonald’s has become the latest company to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) commitments following the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision ending affirmative action in college admissions.

McDonald’s announced Monday it will retire specific goals for achieving diversity at senior leadership levels, The Associated Press reported. The company also plans to disband a program that encourages suppliers to develop diversity training and increase the number of minorities in leadership positions.

Under Reginald J. Miller, McDonald’s president and global diversity, equity and inclusion officer, the Chicago-based company in 2021 announced executive bonuses would be tied to meeting DEI goals.

The company also started its "Allyship through Accountability" policy, which committed to filling 35 percent of U.S. leadership roles with underrepresented groups and 45 percent of leadership roles with women by 2025.

In an open letter to employees and franchisees announcing the rollbacks, McDonald’s senior leadership team said 30 percent of U.S. leaders are from underrepresented groups, and it has reached gender pay equity at all levels since setting the 2021 goal, according to the AP.

McDonald’s becomes the latest corporation to step back from DEI commitments following the Supreme Court’s decision and growing conservative backlash to such policies.

Companies including Walmart, John Deere, Harley-Davidson, Lowe’s and Ford have all ended or cut back on DEI programs since 2023.

While McDonald’s plans to continue reporting demographic data, it will no longer participate in “external surveys.” It’s unclear which surveys those are, but companies including Lowe’s and Ford, have announced they will not participate in an annual survey by the Human Rights Campaign to measure workplace inclusion for LGBTQ employees.

McDonald’s attributed the policy changes to the “shifting legal landscape,” added that the actions of other companies caused it to take a look at its own policies, according to the AP.

Despite the changes, the company said it would continue to support efforts that ensure a diverse base of employees, suppliers and franchisees.

"McDonald’s position and our commitment to inclusion is steadfast. Since our founding, we've prided ourselves on understanding that the foundation of our business is people," the company said on Monday.

"We are proud of the work that we do at McDonald’s. We will continue to drive business results through all three legs of the McDonald’s stool, specifically with our people practices, by fueling economic impact and innovation through our robust supply chain and by building a franchisee pipeline that thrives in the communities we serve and fuels our growth"

Updated at 5:11 p.m. EST.

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