Target rolls back major DEI initiatives

Target on Friday said it’s rolling back diversity, equity and inclusion programs — including some that aim to make its workforce and merchandise better reflect its customers.

In a memo sent to its employees, the Minneapolis-based retailer said it will end its three-year DEI goals, stop reports to external diversity-focused groups like the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index and end a program focused on carrying more products from Black- or minority-owned businesses.

The memo was sent to staff Friday and viewed by CNBC. It was written by Kiera Fernandez, chief community impact and equity officer for Target.

“Many years of data, insights, listening and learning have been shaping this next chapter in our strategy,” she said in the memo. “And as a retailer that serves millions of consumers every day, we understand the importance of staying in step with the evolving external landscape, now and in the future – all in service of driving Target’s growth and winning together.”

A Target spokesperson said there are no job cuts as part of Friday’s DEI announcement.

With the move, the Minneapolis-based discounter joins a growing list of companies including Tractor Supply, Facebook’s parent Meta, Walmart and McDonald’s that have dropped DEI-related pledges and goals. Some of those companies faced pressure from conservative activists or cited the Supreme Court’s ruling blocking affirmative action at colleges — which may not compel corporations to take any action on the issue.

The company’s decision also follows President Donald Trump’s executive orders, made almost immediately after his Inauguration, to end the government’s DEI programs and put federal officials overseeing those initiatives on leave.

Not all companies have joined the trend. On Thursday, Costco said at its annual meeting that more than 98% of shareholders voted against a proposal to review risks of its DEI programs. Costco’s board of director had urged shareholders to vote it down.

Many corporations’ diversity commitments, including Target’s go back for years and were strengthened in the wake of the “Black Lives Matter” protests and the murder of George Floyd in 2020.

Four years ago, Target CEO Brian Cornell said the murder — which happened just a short distance from Target’s headquarters in its hometown — felt personal. He said it motivated him to step up Target’s diversity and equity efforts.

“That could have been one of my Target team members,” he said at the time, recounting his thoughts as he watched the video of Floyd taking his final breaths.

Target expanded its diversity goals at the time, saying it would increase representation of Black employees across its workforce by 20% over the next year. The company started a new program to help Black entrepreneurs develop, test and scale products to sell at mass retailers like Target. And it promised to spend more than $2 billion with Black-owned businesses by 2025, from construction companies that build or remodel stores to advertising firms that market its brand.

The company and its foundation also gave $10 million to support social justice groups, including the National Urban League and African American Leadership Forum.

On its website in recent years, Target has touted Cornell’s and the company’s “steadfast commitment to stand with Black families and fight against racism.” In other posts on its website, the company provided updates on its efforts to add more officers of color, reduce turnover of people of color and increase promotions of women and minorities.

One post was titled “We Are Never Done,” and started off with a quote from Black poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou.

Target dissolved the goals at a time when conservative politicians and activists have increasingly turned their focus on company efforts to be more inclusive.

Target had already felt the heat from conservative groups over some of its other longstanding initiatives. About two years ago, the retailer pulled items from its Pride Month collection after backlash and threats to employees about some merchandise it sold, such as “tuck-friendly” swimsuits for trans people.

Cornell said in 2023 that the backlash contributed to weaker quarterly sales for the company. He said, however, that it would continue to mark heritage months with merchandise collections, such as Black History Month and Pride Month.

Target’s employee base had grown more diverse in recent years.

About 43% of Target’s workforce was white, 31% was Hispanic/Latino, 15% was Black, and 5% was Asian in the fiscal year that ended early February 2024, according to the company’s most recent diversity report.

The company’s leadership team is less diverse than its overall workforce. Seventy-two percent of the leadership was white, followed by 11% Hispanic/Latino, 11% Asian and 6% Black.