NBC News: U.S. companies’ diversity efforts are legal, Democratic AGs say
The Democratic officials said GOP attorneys general were wrong to suggest recently that the Supreme Court decision striking down affirmative action in higher education has any impact on employers' diversity efforts.
(Reuters) — A group of Democratic attorneys general on Wednesday pushed back against claims by some of their Republican counterparts that many corporate workforce diversity programs amount to illegal discrimination.
In a call with reporters, the attorneys general of New York, Illinois, Nevada and four other states said 13 Republican officials were wrong to suggest last week that a recent Supreme Court decision striking down affirmative action in higher education has any impact on employers’ diversity efforts.
The Republican AGs in letters sent to the CEOs of the 100 largest U.S. companies warned that they could take legal action against businesses that set hiring quotas or treat job applicants differently because of their race.
But on Wednesday, the Democratic officials said the vast majority of company diversity, equity and inclusion policies are designed to set aspirational goals or diversify pools of job applicants.
“There is no corporation I’m aware of that promotes quotas or openly discriminates based on a number,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said.
James and the other AGs said they wanted to make clear to companies that their states support diversity efforts and will not take legal action to dismantle them.