Apple Shareholders Vote To Retain Diversity Programmes

A vote at Apple has clarified it’s position about a shareholder proposal to scrap the iPhone maker’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programmes.

Last month Apple’s board of directors had recommended investors to vote against the proposal to scrap the DEI programmes.

And now the Associated Press has reported that shareholders have backed the board, and voted against the proposal to scrap Apple’s DEI programmes.

DEI vote

The proposal to scrap Apple’s DEI scheme had been submitted by the National Center for Public Policy Research, a conservative think tank, which had urged Apple to follow its fellow tech giants and scrap its DEI initiatives, which are currently being targetted by the administration of Donald Trump.

Citing Supreme Court decisions, the conservative think tank had argued diversity programmes pose “litigation, reputational and financial risks to companies”.

Apple’s board however had said the move was not needed as the company has appropriate checks and balances in place.

Now according to the Associated Press, Apple shareholders were given a brief presentation about the anti-DEI proposal, and then voted, rejecting the proposal to scrap the DEI initiatives.

In a regulatory filing submitted Tuesday evening, Apple reportedly disclosed that 97 percent of the ballots cast voted against the proposal.

The outcome has vindicated Apple management’s decision to stand behind its diversity commitment, despite Trump asking the US Department of Justice (DoJ) to look into whether these types of programs have discriminated against some employees whose race or gender aren’t aligned with the initiative’s goals.

Balancing act

The vote comes as Apple CEO Tim Cook seeks to maintain a cordial relationship with the Trump administration.

Earlier this week Apple said it plans to invest $500 billion (£395bn) in the US in the next four years, including hiring 20,000 new staff and producing AI servers in the country – a commitment that was applauded by President Trump.

AP noted that Tuesday’s shareholder vote at Apple came a month after the same conservative think tank had presented a similar proposal during Costco’s annual meeting, only to have it overwhelmingly rejected as well.

Workforce landscape

Other tech firms including Google, Amazon, and Meta have already announced they are scrapping some of their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies.

Other non-tech firms such as Walt Disney Co., McDonald’s, Ford, Walmart, Target, Lowe’s and John Deere have also reportedly backed away from DEI.

And AP reported that Tim Cook has conceded Apple may have to make some adjustments to its diversity program “as the legal landscape changes” while still striving to maintain a culture that has helped elevate the company to its current market value of $3.7 trillion — greater than any other business in the world.

“We will continue to create a culture of belonging,” Cook told shareholders during the meeting.

It should be remembered that soon after taking office, Trump had signed a number of executive orders, including one aimed (in part) at pressuring government contractors to scrap their DEI initiatives.

If Apple is identified as a government contractor by selling some of its products and services to the federal government, it is likely to be impacted by Trump’s order.

In its last diversity and inclusion report issued in 2022, Apple disclosed that nearly three-fourths of its global workforce consisted of white and Asian employees.

Nearly two-thirds of its employees were men, AP reported.