Standing Up Against Trump is Good for Business

Robert Reich -  Standing up against Trump is not only important politically and morally. It’s also profitable. Diversity, for example, is good for business. CEOs that have scaled back their companies’ diversity programs in response to Trump’s attacks have misread the market and are now suffering the consequences.

When Target rolled back DEI, the company confronted a consumer boycott, which led to a 17 percent drop in the value of its stock. A similar boycott of Walmart has contributed to an 18 percent drop in its stock value in the past month alone.

Palantir, a data analysis and technology firm whose contracts with the federal government are expanding, has taken heat over its rejection of DEI and coziness with Trump. (In a recent speech to the Economic Club of New York, Palantir CEO Alex Karp told the audience that DEI programs are antithetical to meritocracy.)

On the other hand, corporations like Costco and Apple, which have stood firm against Trump and in favor of DEI, have done well.

That’s because diversity is good for business. Investors and consumers often consider a company’s commitment to diversity in making their decisions. Most big institutional shareholders such as BlackRock and Vanguard believe that a diverse workforce and customer base increases corporate profits.

Costco’s management says its DEI efforts have helped it attract and retain a wide range of employees and improve merchandise and services in stores. “Among other things, a diverse group of employees helps bring originality and creativity to our merchandise offerings, promoting the ‘treasure hunt’ that our customers value,” Costco said in its proxy statement to investors.

Similarly, law firms that have refused to cave to Trump’s blackmail are being rewarded by clients, while those that have surrendered are being penalized.

At least 11 major companies — among them Oracle, Morgan Stanley, Microsoft, and McDonald’s — have shifted their legal work to firms that have stood up against Trump and away from firms that struck deals with him, The Wall Street Journal reports.