The majority of senior HR professionals and C-suite executives in the UK are expecting the rapid retreat in diversity, equity, and inclusion programmes from the US will influence the UK workplace.
Occupational Health Assessment conducted a survey earlier this week of 140 UK employers and found that almost 70% (69%) believed the policy changes under President Trump will affect UK businesses.
Trump issued an executive order on Tuesday that all US government employees working in DEI will be placed on paid administrative leave starting yesterday.
In his inaugural speech, Trump promised to “forge an society that is color-blind and merit based”. Trump also stated that the US government will only recognize two genders: male and female.
Steve Herbert, brand Ambassador at Occupational Health Assessment, said that the US retreat from DEI had been gathering pace for months. Many major businesses announced the curtailment of or the complete rollback elements of the previously established and promoted EDI policy.
Herbert said that the process appeared to have started in mid-2024. The number and size of announcements increased as the presidential inauguration neared.
According to the research, 69% of employers believed that there would be changes in the UK workplace due to the US reversal. However, only 6% thought these changes would be significant. Only 16% of UK employers believed there would be no changes in the UK. The same number was unsure as to what could happen.
The survey found that there was also a wide range of opinions on whether the DEI reversed was a positive or negative thing.
Nearly 4 in 10 respondents (37%) agreed that at least some of the measures taken on the American side should be reversed. In this group, 32% of respondents felt that certain aspects of DEI policy needed to be changed. 5% of respondents said DEI policies had gone too far at British workplaces.
The majority of UK employers (53%), however, said that they continue to support policies on equality and diversity. More than one fifth (22%) of employers said they wanted to see DEI initiatives further strengthened, while 31% thought current initiatives were “about the right”.
Magnus Kauders of Occupational Health Assessment, the managing director of Occupational Health Assessment, said that UK companies curtailing workplace DEI may be in conflict to some aspects of government’s Making Work Pay plans.
Amazon, Meta Walmart John Deere Ford Harley-Davidson and McDonald’s were among the large-name companies that confirmed their intention to roll back DEI programs.
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