‘Diversity’ Becomes ‘Belonging’ as Companies Shift DEI Lingo

References to “DEI” and “diversity, equity and inclusion” in corporate annual reports to shareholders have dropped by more than half so far this year amid a Trump administration crackdown on such efforts.

The acronym “DEI” appeared in 10-K reports 180 times from January 1 to March 12, down 55% from 396 times in the same date range the year before, according to a review of 10-K annual reports by Bloomberg Law. References over the same time frames for “diversity, equity and inclusion” fell 57% to 422 from 991 the year before.

Companies from Delta Air Lines Inc. to Bank of America Corp. instead are embracing a new corporate lexicon in their reports to investors—selecting phrases like “inclusion,” “merit-based hiring,” and “belonging"—in the midst of the Trump administration’s moves to purge DEI programs in both government and the private sector. In some cases the about-face has been dramatic. AT&T, for instance, told investors it believes in “championing” diversity a year go, and then purged references to the term in this year’s report

In choosing terms like “merit-based” and “belonging,” businesses seek a legal shield to signal that they aren’t giving anyone opportunities they haven’t earned, particularly when the scope of the Trump administration’s purge on “illegal DEI” remains unclear, corporate consultants say. But such language shifts don’t necessarily mean a company is backing away from its diversity efforts.

“You’re not going to know what’s really happening unless you’re under the hood,” said Joanna Colosimo, vice president of workforce analytics and compliance strategy at DCI Consulting.

New Jargon

While diversity has been a corporate hot topic for more than a decade, DEI language wasn’t a ubiquitous feature in 10-K annual reports until companies ramped up efforts following the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, sparked in part by the police murder of George Floyd. Companies typically file 10-K reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission at the beginning of each year, updating investors on their goals, risks, and financial outlook.

Some of the language shifts away from the term preceded Trump’s executive order in January to root out DEI programs. The Society for Human Resource Management, the world’s largest HR association, caused a stir when it announced last summer that it dropped the “E” for equity from what it previously called “IE&D” to “address the current shortcomings of DE&I programs, which have led to societal backlash and increasing polarization.”

That switch came amid a years-long conservative movement against both DEI and broader environmental, social and governance efforts. Conservative activists including Robby Starbuck targeted dozens of companies over their diversity programs.

Jill Fisch, a business law professor at the University of Pennsylvania, acknowledged companies had already been weighing how much diversity-related disclosure would be appropriate in 10-Ks rather than more specialized reports. But the language changes on diversity this year appear to be “a really dramatic shift—and unusually so” for corporate filings, Fisch said.

AT&T, in dropping diversity references, has switched to emphasizing “inclusion.”

Delta sprinkled the term “merit-based” into the diversity section of its report this year, but did not use that term at all in the same report filed last year. The changes come amid particular attention on diversity programs in the airline industry.

Bank of America didn’t call its efforts “diversity and inclusion” in its annual report this year, instead opting for “talent, inclusion and opportunity.” The bank declined to comment on the change but highlighted a section in its 10-K that says creating an inclusive environment is core to its values.

And entertainment giant AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. switched out “diversity, equity and inclusion” for “belonging for all” in its report this year.

Scores of companies, including Planet Fitness Inc., highlighted having a workforce with varying perspectives and background this year: “In our clubs and Club Support Centers, we’re committed to fostering an environment where all team members and members feel accepted, respected, and like they belong. We believe that a variety of thoughts, perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds within our workforce makes us stronger and is core to who we are as a brand,” the gym and fitness chain said in its annual report.

Words Matter

Meanwhile, there are a range of stakeholders besides investors—including employees, customers, and the general public—who are scouring corporate statements for acknowledgment of diversity in their workforce.

Companies should be cognizant that “words matter” when a company shifts how it talks about diversity, said David J. Johns, CEO and executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition, and that such changes “will impact policy practice and peoples’ experiences for decades to come.”

But “if erasing a line in the report also erases all of the work that the line was supposed to signal, then that means that there was no work in the first place,” Johns said.

Many companies are continuing to tout to shareholders that diversity is important for business, even if they’re making some terminology changes. Southwest Airlines Co.—which is fighting a lawsuit from a conservative activist challenging a program that offered free flights to Hispanic students—emphasized “belonging” when detailing its diversity efforts, expanding DEI to DEIB in its annual report this year.

Ultimately, understanding a company’s diversity commitments—and how they’re rolled out—is the best gauge of its stance on such practices, said Stephen Paskoff, CEO of ELI, where he advises businesses on workforce issues.

“If you’re going to replace ‘inclusion’ with ‘belonging,’ what does that really mean?” he said. “It’s just a synonym.”