Meta cutting DEI team, programs in broad shift

Meta told employees Friday it will cut its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) team and roll back several related programs, marking another major shift in policy for the leading social media company.

The move is the latest signal Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, is aligning itself with the incoming Trump administration, which is widely expected to roll back several DEI programs

In an internal memo sent to employees Friday, Meta pointed to the "changing" "legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the United States" to explain the changes.

The memo was first reported by Axios. Meta later confirmed the information to The Hill.

"The Supreme Court of the United States has recently made decisions signaling a shift in how courts will approach DEI," Meta Vice President of Human Resources Janelle Gale wrote in the document. "It reaffirms longstanding principles that discrimination should not be tolerated or promoted on the basis of inherent characteristics."

Gale told employees the term DEI has become "charged," with some people claiming it suggests preference to some groups over others.

Moving forward, the Facebook official noted that Meta will stop using the "Diverse Slate Approach," a program guaranteeing a diverse set of candidates is considered for each position.

Maintaining the company will still source candidates from different backgrounds, Gale said Meta now believes "there are other ways to build an industry-leading workforce and leverage teams made up of world-class people from all types of backgrounds to build products that work for everyone."

The company will also end its supplier diversity efforts, which were aimed at sourcing from diverse-owned businesses, and will instead focus on small and medium-sized businesses, she said.

"Opportunities will continue to be available to all qualified suppliers, including those who were part of the supplier diversity program," the memo stated.

The changes also include the elimination of Meta's DEI-focused team. Maxine Williams, Meta's chief diversity officer, will shift into a role focused on accessibility and engagement, according to the documents.

It follows a series of DEI rollbacks at other major companies like Walmart and McDonald's, which both cited the 2023 Supreme Court ruling that ended affirmative action in college admissions. Conservative groups have since been able to succeed in court when fighting against some diversity programs.

"Instead of equity and inclusion training programs, we will build programs that focus on how to apply fair and consistent practices that mitigate bias for all, no matter your background," Gale wrote.

The move by Meta was quickly applauded by at least two Republicans on Friday.

“The Woke Industrial Complex came to an end on November 5th. No one wanted DEI policies to begin with, and the private sector is finally waking up and realizing how divisive and dangerous these programs have been," Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.) said of the news Friday.

"We’ve got a lot to uproot and fix in this country, but we are starting to turn the corner in the right direction.”

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) wrote, "Love to see it," in a repost of the news on X. 

The news comes just days after Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta will eliminate its fact-checking program and replace it with a user-driven community notes system.

The change sparked immediate criticism from Democrats, who accused Zuckerberg and his company of bending the knee to Trump. The president-elect has vowed to fight against censorship on social media platforms.

Other tech advocacy groups have raised concerns that the switch to a community notes system, akin to that used on Elon Musk's social platform X, will make it easier for misinformation and disinformation to spread on the platform.

Zuckerberg is one of several tech leaders accused of cozying up to Trump to mend fences ahead of his second term.

Meta dished out a $1 million donation to Trump’s inaugural fund last month, while the CEO met with the president-elect at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

Earlier this month, prominent Republican lobbyist Joel Kaplan was named to replace Nick Clegg as the company’s chief global affairs office. Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White, another Trump ally, will also join the company’s board of directors.