Some DEI policies at Lowe's to change after legal attacks on programs

NEW YORK CITY, New York: After facing a conservative backlash online, Home improvement chain Lowe's is walking back on its diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

Lowe's has joined several other companies that altered their programs since the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed affirmative action in college admissions.

In an internal memo shared by Lowe's with The Associated Press, its executive leadership said the retailer began "reviewing" its programs following the court's July 2023 ruling. The company recently decided to combine its resource groups, for "individual groups representing diverse sections of our associate population," into one umbrella organization.

The retailer will also be unavailable for an annual survey by the Human Rights Campaign that measures workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ employees and will also stop sponsoring and participating in events, such as festivals and parades, outside of its business areas.

The changes were made to ensure Lowe's policies are "lawful" and aligned with its commitment to "include everyone," the memo states.

Robby Starbuck, a conservative political commentator who has gone after companies such as Tractor Supply and John Deere, took credit for the changes this week in a post on X. He said he had approached a Lowe's executive online last week and detailed his plans to "expose" the company over its hiring policies and other topics, such as LGBTQ+ employee resource groups and funding for Pride events.

However, Lowe's spokesperson Steve Salazar pushed back on that claim in an email. He noted that Starbuck's outreach came after the company "already announced changes that had long been in process" internally. The company memo did not specify when exactly these changes were implemented but noted that they were discussed at an August 21 meeting.

Last week, Lowe's rejected a different claim spreading on social media, in which a digitally-altered image quoted Lowe's CEO Marvin Ellison as saying that conservatives who didn't like the company's values should instead shop at rival Home Depot.

Ellison has diversified the company's ranks, adding more women and ethnically diverse leaders since taking the helm in 2018. Ellison, a Black, grew up in segregated rural Tennessee, has been outspoken about racism since the police killing of George Floyd, which sparked major protests for racial justice in 2020.

Criticism of such DEI policies has extended well beyond Lowe's to companies across all industries. They include boycott calls on social media as well as legal attacks following the Supreme Court's affirmative action ruling, which many anti-DEI activists want to use to set a similar precedent in the working world.

Following an online pressure campaign earlier this summer, Tractor Supply and John Deere ended some diversity measures. Last week, Harley-Davidson backtracked on its DEI policies, though the company noted in its announcement that it has not "operated a DEI function since April 2024."

Some companies are bracing for potential changes in terms of their federal contracts, for example, which have historically been a powerful way to promote equity in workplaces. Others may want to change the language or find new workarounds to existing programs.