Rachel Robinson
High School Writing
January 30th, 2025
Gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, culture, and religion. There are numerous factors that historically divided societies and led to discrimination. However, in recent decades, movements advocating for equal rights and opportunities have led to significant societal changes, encouraging people to make a diverse, open society for everyone, regardless of their differences. Many companies have responded to this by implementing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives to create fairer workplaces.
The United States played a leading role in introducing DEI initiatives in the corporate sector. According to ABC News (2025), DEI policies aim to “correct discriminatory practices” by hiring people from various backgrounds (diversity), conducting fair payment, treatment, and opportunities (equity), and valuing one’s ideas and perspectives (inclusion). Since the 2010s, major U.S. companies have promoted diversity in hiring, equal pay, and inclusive work cultures, leading companies in other countries.
However, DEI efforts in the U.S. are now facing backlash. Critics argue that some companies prioritize hiring quotas over real inclusion (i.e., tokenism), while others believe DEI gives unfair advantages to certain groups (i.e., reverse discrimination). This essay will explore these two major challenges and propose three solutions to improve corporate DEI: gathering employee feedback, setting both short- and long-term goals, and improving communication.
The first major problem is tokenism, where companies hire diverse employees to appeal to the public but fail to provide real inclusion. Hiring diverse employees is not enough; without fair promotions, mentorship, and leadership opportunities, these employees may feel isolated and undervalued. For example, many companies have increased hiring of women and minority employees, but their turnover rate remains disproportionately high. According to a study from Harvard Kennedy School, “Black employees are 6.7 percentage points more likely to turnover within two years [compared to white employees], [and] the largest turnover gap is between Black and White women, at 8.9 percentage points” (Linos, 2024). This is often due to the lack of career development opportunities or company cultures that fail to integrate diverse perspectives. Tokenism makes DEI initiatives appear superficial rather than meaningful, ultimately damaging workplace morale and trust.
The second major problem is the perceptions of reverse discrimination, where some employees believe DEI policies unfairly prioritize diversity over merit. This perception often occurs when companies set strict diversity quotas or appear to favor certain groups in hiring and promotion decisions. Several lawsuits have emerged from employees who felt hiring decisions were based on identity rather than the individual’s skill, such as the Herrera vs. NYC Department of Education, where Lois Herrera, who was working in the NYC Department of Education, claimed that she was “replaced by a less qualified Black man” (Edelman, 2024). Whether these claims are valid or not, the perception of unfairness often creates workplace tension and rejection, reducing cooperation and team unity.
In order to overcome these problems and improve corporate DEI initiatives, the following paragraphs will propose three step solutions. The first step is to gather feedback from employees to improve DEI initiatives. Many DEI initiatives are designed by executives without input from employees, leading to initiatives that do not reflect actual workplace needs. If companies fail to address the actual experiences of minority employees, tokenism can persist. Meanwhile, if non-minority employees feel their concerns are ignored, perceptions of reverse discrimination can grow. To address these issues, companies should:
Conduct anonymous surveys to measure employee experiences with DEI initiatives.
Establish advisory groups representing both minority and non-minority employees to discuss workplace inclusion.
Train managers to gather feedback from teams and implement necessary changes.
By gathering employee feedback, companies can make DEI initiatives more fair and effective, reducing both tokenism and reverse discrimination concerns.
The second step will be setting both short-term and long-term goals for DEI initiatives. Many DEI initiatives focus only on short-term hiring quotas, which can unintentionally reinforce tokenism by prioritizing diversity numbers over real change. To build sustainable workplace inclusion, companies must implement long-term strategies such as:
Mentorship programs: Pair minority employees with experienced leaders to provide career guidance.
Leadership training: Develop diverse talent into future managers and executives.
Regular progress assessments: Evaluate retention rates, employee satisfaction, and promotion trends.
These long-term strategies will shift DEI initiatives from a short-term public relations effort to a lasting cultural transformation, solving tokenism.
The third solution will be encouraging open communication. Many companies often fail to clearly explain the entire picture of DEI initiatives, leading to confusion and skepticism, and it is essential for non-minority employees to understand the DEI initiatives. To build trust and transparency, companies should:
Hold open forums where employees can ask questions and discuss their concerns.
Publish clear DEI progress reports outlining the hiring trends, promotions, and salary equity.
Ensure managers communicate DEI goals effectively to all employees.
These policies ensure all employees understand DEI goals, which will allow companies to move beyond superficial diversity efforts, solving the issue of tokenism. The policies will also help employees accept DEI initiatives and make everyone feel included, minimizing the perception of reverse discrimination.
While DEI initiatives are essential for creating fair workplaces, their effectiveness is threatened by tokenism and reverse discrimination. Companies must gather employee feedback to refine DEI strategies, set both short- and long-term goals for sustainable effects, and improve communication to build workplace trust in order to make a society open for everyone.
Word count: 901
References
Alfonseca, K. (2025, January 24). A look at what DEI means amid Trump executive orders. ABC News. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
Edelman, S. (2024, April 27). NYC to pay $2.1M in 'Toxic whiteness' discrimination settlement. NY Post. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
Ellis, N. (2025, January 23). What is DEI, and why is it dividing America? CNN: Breaking News, Latest News and Videos.
Linos, E. (2024, July). Intersectional Peer Effects at Work: The Effect of White Coworkers on Black Women's Careers. Harvard Kennedy School.
Zheng, L. (2022, December 1). The Failure of the DEI-Industrial Complex. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved February 5, 2025.