In the wake of social media pressure, John Deere released a statement that revamps its diversity initiatives. The company announced that it will be scuttling nearly all of its public-facing diversity, equity, and inclusion policies in favor of a quality-based workplace.
The major tractor company said on its X account (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday that it will commit to prioritizing quality and customer trust over DEI initiatives.
“Our customers’ trust and confidence in us are of the utmost importance to everyone at John Deere. We fully intend to earn it every day and in every way we can,” the post read, along with a full statement.
The announcement comes just a month after the company announced plans to lay off nearly 600 employees as farm equipment demand declines.
Our customers’ trust and confidence in us are of the utmost importance to everyone at John Deere. We fully intend to earn it every day and in every way we can. pic.twitter.com/8BgyPyQJQo
— John Deere (@JohnDeere) July 16, 2024
Their efforts include pledging the company “will no longer participate in or support external social or cultural awareness parades, festivals or events,” will be “auditing all company-mandated training materials and policies to ensure the absence of socially motivated messages,” and “reaffirming within the business that the existence of diversity quotas and pronoun identification have never been and are not company policy.”
In addition, the statement said that employee resource groups “will exclusively be focused on professional development, networking, mentoring, and supporting talent recruitment efforts.”
“To best serve our customers and employees, Deere is always listening to feedback and looking for opportunities to improve. That’s why we consistently prioritize internal policies that more closely align our business strategy to meet the needs of our customers,” the statement read.
The statement came about a week after filmmaker Robby Starbuck released a video report on several “woke” policies at John Deere, saying he found the company was “funding a pride event for kids as young as 3,” asking employees to “list their ‘preferred pronouns’ on all communications,” promoting a “United for Equity” program among accounting and finance teams, and forming “LGBTQ & race-based identity groups at corporate.”
It’s time to expose John Deere.@JohnDeere has been one of the most beloved brands by conservative farmers but recently on CEO John May’s watch, they’ve gone woke.
Here’s some of what we found:
• Funding a pride event for kids as young as 3
• “Genderbread man” training
•… pic.twitter.com/nWnSUCW08K— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) July 9, 2024
While John Deere did not reference the report directly, the company’s statement emphasized its commitment to listening and responding to customer feedback.
In 2020, John Deere took several major steps toward supporting diversity in agriculture. This included the creation of the LEAP (Legislation, Education, Advocacy, and Production Systems) Coalition that focused on improving the livelihoods of Black farmers, partnering with the National Black Growers Council and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, and pledging money to the NAACP Empowerment Programs to fight racial inequality.
It is unclear whether the policy changes will impact any of these efforts or the jobs related to them.
Deere is not the first this summer to make major shifts to its diversity plan. After being attacked for promoting minority and gender-affirming policies, Tractor Supply Co. also chose to reverse course, announcing in June that it would ax DEI goals and positions and cease sponsorship of “nonbusiness activities” such as pride festivals and voting campaigns, intending to focus more on “rural America priorities.”
“We work hard to live up to our mission and values every day and represent the values of the communities and customers we serve,” Tractor Supply said in its statement. “We have heard from customers that we have disappointed them. We have taken this feedback to heart.”