US Steel Flags Trump DEI Order as Risk Factor for Investors

United States Steel Corp. on Friday told shareholders that President Donald Trump’s directive scrutinizing corporate diversity programs is a possible risk to its business.

The steel producer pointed in its 10-K annual report to Trump telling federal agencies to probe what his administration describes as illegal diversity programs.

“In recent years ‘anti-ESG’ sentiment has gained momentum across the U.S., with several states and Congress having proposed or enacted ‘anti-ESG’ policies, legislation, or initiatives or issued related legal opinions, and the President having recently issued an executive order opposing diversity equity and inclusion (‘DEI’) initiatives in the private sector,” the filing said.

The filing said policies opposing DEI and environmental, social, and governance efforts “could result in U. S. Steel facing additional compliance obligations, becoming the subject of investigations and enforcement actions, or sustaining reputational harm.”

The news comes at a politically pivotal moment for US Steel after the Biden administration blocked the Japanese company Nippon Steel Corporation’s proposed acquisition of the American business on national security grounds.

US Steel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The company said in its annual report last year that it aims “to have an engaged and diverse workforce to promote new ideas and innovation, reflect the communities where we operate, and deliver exceptional customer service.” This year, that same sentence omitted a reference to having a “diverse” workforce.

A line from last year’s report that said the company sought to “build an inclusive environment where people feel free to bring their professional selves to work” was also omitted.

Corporate America’s turmoil over DEI and promoting diversity has ratcheted up since Trump’s executive order. Some businesses had already been rolling back diversity programs before Trump took office in response to conservative attacks.

The steel giant is among the first major companies to explicitly mention Trump’s order as a risk factor for its shareholders.

An early batch of annual reports filed since the executive order shows companies aren’t all pulling away from their diversity programs: companies including streaming platform Netflix Inc. and spice maker McCormick & Co. stood by their need for diversity, equity, and inclusion policies in 10-Ks filed over the past week.