Costco shareholders reject anti-DEI measure

Costco shareholders have roundly rejected a proposal calling for a report on the risks associated with keeping its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts in place, the wholesale club said Thursday.

Preliminary results show that some 98% of shareholders voted against the measure, according to the company.

Last month, Costco’s board of directors came out unanimously against the proposal, which was brought by activist shareholder the National Center for Public Policy Research, which raised concerns of risk from Costco’s DEI program after the Supreme Court’s ruling in SFFA v. Harvard that discriminating on the basis of race in college admissions violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. 

TARGET SCALING BACK DEI POLICIES AFTER TRUMP SIGNS EXECUTIVE ORDER

The proposal cites how attorneys general of 13 states have warned Fortune 100 companies that the ruling implicated corporate DEI programs, and a number of lawsuits have been filed. 

But Costco’s board defended its programs.

 “Consistent with our commitment to ‘obey the law,’ we regularly evaluate our practices concerning compliance with law, including evolving Supreme Court decisions,” the board wrote in response to the proposal. “We believe that our diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are legally appropriate, and nothing in the proposal demonstrates otherwise.”

WHAT CAUSED THE REVOLT AGAINST DEI IN AMERICA?

Costco’s and its shareholders’ continued embrace of DEI comes as support for the programs is faltering in the private sector as well as the public sector.

Over the past year, more than a dozen major companies, including Walmart, McDonald’s, Ford and Amazon, have scaled back their DEI initiatives, and shareholder resolutions at U.S. corporations looking to counter DEI programs and other corporate social considerations garnered less than 2% support on average in 2024.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday to eliminate all DEI programs from the federal government.

FOX Business’ Danielle Wallace and Reuters contributed to this report.