From Berkshire to Levi, stockholders are saying 'no' to more DEI rollbacks

Sat, May 17, 2025, 7:30 AM 4 min read

Many big American companies are backing away from DEI policies this year as scrutiny intensifies in Washington, D.C., but stockholders are not necessarily in favor of more measures that question diversity initiatives.

The latest example came earlier this month, when Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B, BRK-A) investors gathered for the company's annual shareholder meeting in Omaha, Neb.

Stockholders in Warren Buffett's conglomerate voted down two measures from DEI critics that would have required Berkshire's holding companies to report risks associated with race-based initiatives and designate a board committee to oversee DEI strategies across its businesses.

Berkshire controls 189 operating businesses that employ nearly 400,000 people, so any such policies would have had widespread implications. Earlier this year, it stripped out some language in its annual report discussing diversity and inclusion.

That's not to say the same Berkshire stockholders were ready to give a thumbs up to more diversity measures, either. They rejected one proposal that would have required Berkshire to issue a report on pay disparity.

That same pattern has repeated at many other big companies thus far during annual meeting season, pointing to a broader fatigue with the topic of DEI, which refers to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

As of May 8, shareholders had voted down 17 anti-DEI proposals, and 14 were either omitted or withdrawn from ballots, according to proxy advocacy firm ISS Corporate. A total of 52 were introduced, with more votes yet to happen this spring and summer.

Anti-DEI proposals were almost unanimously rejected by shareholders at Apple (AAPL), Disney (DIS), Deere & Company (DE), Levi Strauss & Co. (LEVI), Goldman Sachs (GS), Boeing (BA), Wells Fargo (WFC), American Express (AXP), Coca-Cola (KO), and Costco (COST).

"Shareholders overwhelmingly voted against resolutions to end DEI and backed management maintaining merit-based diversity programs focused on financial performance," said Andrew Behar, CEO of As You Sow, a nonprofit organization that advocates for environmental and social corporate responsibility.

Yet pro-DEI proposals have fared no better.

As of May 8, roughly 44 pro-DEI proposals were on corporate America's ballots this year, according to ISS Corporate. Among those that went to a vote, none have thus far gained shareholder support as of that date. Seven failed, and 15 were omitted or withdrawn.

Pro-DEI proposals were voted down this year at Deere, Pilgrims Pride (PPC), AutoNation (AN), AO Smith (AOS), Lennar (LEN), Genuine Parts (GPC), and Wells Fargo.