The U.S. Supreme Court just ruled against affirmative action policies in universities and colleges – what does this mean for employers?
Colleges and universities are subject to different laws than employers. Accordingly, there is no direct impact of this Supreme Court decision on employers. However, there is likely to be separate legal challenges to employers based on this decision. In particular, large companies like Amazon, Nike and Nordstrom are already facing challenges to their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs and this decision will likely strengthen and increase the number of challenges to company DEI programs. At this juncture, companies should not jettison their DEI programs but keep them under review pending the outcome of the cases against these large employers.