Google ends minority hiring goals, reviewing DEI efforts

Google is dropping its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) hiring goals in the wake of President Trump’s executive orders seeking to end the practice. 

“We’ll continue to invest in states across the U.S.—and in many countries globally—but in the future we will no longer have aspirational goals,” the company wrote in a Wednesday email to employees, according to the Wall Street Journal. 

“Google has always been committed to creating a workplace where we hire the best people wherever we operate, create an environment where everyone can thrive, and treat everyone fairly,” the email outlined. “That’s exactly what you can expect to see going forward.”

Black and Latino employees currently represent less than 10 percent of the workforce at the tech company, headquartered in Mountain View, California.

Google and many other companies ramped up “DEI” efforts amid racial justice protests that swept the country after the death of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, at the hands of Minneapolis police officers. 

In 2020, Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said the company would work to combat “systemic racism,” which he said “permeates every aspect of life, from interactions with law enforcement, to access to housing and capital, to health care, education, and the workplace.”

He set a goal of increasing “leadership representation of underrepresented groups” by 30 percent leading up to 2025 and stated Alphabet Inc. unit would provide $175 million in a mix of financing and funding to support Black business owners, startup founders and developers.

The company’s decision to shift course away from DEI efforts follows similar moves from Harley Davidson, Lowe’s, John Deere and Target.

“We’ve updated our 10-k language to reflect this, and as a federal contractor, our teams are also evaluating changes required following recent court decisions and executive orders on this topic,” a Google spokesperson told The Hill.

Trump has also quickly moved to gut programs promoting diversity within the federal government, as part of his push against “woke” policies.