Nike Subpoenaed Over Alleged Discrimination Against White Workers -- Update

By Katherine Hamilton

Nike is being asked to produce information related to allegations by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that it discriminated against white workers.

The EEOC said Wednesday it filed a subpoena enforcement action against the shoe company in a federal Missouri court.

The agency is investigating allegations that Nike's diversity, equity and inclusion objectives resulted in "a pattern or practice of disparate treatment against white employees."

Nike didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

As part of that investigation, the EEOC has been seeking information about how Nike selects workers for layoffs and how it tracks worker race and ethnicity data. The agency is also looking into 16 programs that allegedly provide race-restricted mentoring and career development.

The EEOC said it has been seeking information related to the worker discrimination allegations since 2018.

Among the complaints against Nike is a federal civil rights complaint filed by America First Legal, a conservative nonprofit law firm that has focused on filing lawsuits against diversity programs.

In AFL's complaint to the EOCC, it alleged Nike was using numerical quotas to ensure diversity in hiring, training and promotion, which it claimed excluded white, straight men.

AFL has filed complaints on similar grounds against a wide range of other public companies, including Disney, Starbucks and Salesforce.

Companies, including Nike, made a widespread push to increase racial and gender diversity following the #MeToo movement and the murder of George Floyd in 2020. Nike had already been facing lawsuits in 2018 and 2019 from former employees alleging racial and gender-based discrimination.

In response to Floyd's death, Nike hired a new chief diversity officer and pledged to invest $40 million over four years to support organizations focused on social justice and racial inequality in the U.S.

A few years later, many of those diversity initiatives were brought under scrutiny. The Supreme Court overturned affirmative action in higher education admissions in 2023, which sparked concern across the corporate world that diversity initiatives could prompt legal action. Companies began scaling back racial justice commitments and demand for chief diversity officers nose-dived.

Under the Trump administration, the EEOC has started probing several institutions about their treatment of white male workers. In May, the agency published a report on Harvard University's hiring and promotion practices, noting that its share of tenured white male faculty had dropped. EEOC's chair Andrea Lucas said the data showed a pattern of discrimination.

Write to Katherine Hamilton at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

02-04-26 1526ET