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- New surveys show declining support for workplace diversity efforts, though most still approve of them.
- Republicans increasingly view diversity efforts negatively, while Democrats largely support them.
- The issue emerged in Utah earlier this year with passage of HB261, which dismantles diversity programs at Utah's public universities.
WASHINGTON — New data shows declining support for diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the workplace, though a majority still backs such moves and the focus of intense debate in Utah and beyond.
Pew Research Center conducted a pair of national surveys on workplace diversity initiatives, and 52% of respondents said such efforts are "a good thing," while 21% believe they are "a bad thing." In a 2023 survey by the group, which dubs itself a "nonpartisan, nonadvocacy fact tank," 56% of respondents said diversity efforts are "a good thing," slightly more than this year, and 16% said they are "a bad thing."
Diversity efforts, characterized by Pew in 2023 "as policies that ensure fairness in hiring, pay or promotions," have been increasingly targeted by critics who view them as a form of reverse discrimination, unfairly benefitting ethnic and racial minorities and members of other identity groups. The issue emerged front-and-center in Utah earlier this year when lawmakers passed HB261, eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs at the state's public universities.
The new Pew surveys, conducted in early September and early October, seem to suggest a growing skepticism among some toward diversity efforts, in line with the apparent sentiments that spurred the passage of HB261 and other legislation around the country. "American workers' opinions on the role of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the workplace have become more negative since last year," reads the lead sentence of the Pew report on the surveys, released last week.
Still, certain trends remain.
"As was the case in 2023, women, Democrats and Black, Hispanic and Asian workers are among the groups most likely to say focusing on increasing (diversity, equity and inclusion) in the workplace is a good thing," reads the new Pew report. "Republicans and men continue to be among the groups of workers most likely to see (diversity, equity and inclusion) efforts as a bad thing, and their views have become more negative since last year."
Here are some more takeaways from the recent Pew surveys on diversity, equity and inclusion:
Most respondents, 58%, say diversity practices help Black women, and 55% say they help Black men. Just 30% say they help white women, and 14% say they help white men, with the figures for Hispanic and Asian people lying in between.
"More Americans say (diversity, equity and inclusion) practices help rather than hurt Black, Hispanic and Asian men and women, as well as white women," reads the Pew report. "In turn, far more Americans say (diversity, equity and inclusion programming) hurts white men than say it helps them (36% vs. 14%)."
Gauging by political party, 42% of Republicans or those leaning Republican said diversity efforts are "a bad thing," up from 30% in 2023. On the flip side, 27% of Republicans said they are "a good thing," down from 30% last year. Among Democrats or those leaning Democratic, just 4% said diversity programs are "a bad thing," same as last year. A large majority, 75%, said they are "a good thing," down from 78% last year.
Most workers, 52% of respondents, think their company pays about the right amount of attention to diversity initiatives, down from 54% last year. On the other side, 19% think their employers pay too much attention, up from 14% last year.
The Utah measure targeting diversity initiatives at state public universities took effect on July 1. It mandated the dismantling of diversity programs, with proponents saying the programming should be available to all regardless of their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or other personal identifiers. Critics have decried the change, saying diversity programs help create a level playing field in tapping university resources and that eliminating them hurts already marginalized students.
