MOLINE, IL: Farm equipment maker John Deere is distancing itself from diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives following backlash from a conservative social media influencer.
In a statement John Deere posted on X on Tuesday, the company said that in order to best serve customers and employees, it is listening to feedback and looking for opportunities to improve. “That’s why we consistently prioritize internal policies that more closely align our business strategy to meet the needs of our customers,” the statement said.
John Deere said that it revised its corporate guidelines last year to solely focus on sponsorships supporting its business and brand. Its nonprofit partnerships center on priority areas such as hunger; economic development; poverty alleviation; science, technology, engineering and mathematics; agriculture education; and support for U.S. service members and veterans.
The company said it will “no longer participate in or support external social or cultural awareness, parades, festivals or events.”
Its business resource groups will exclusively be focused on professional development, networking, mentoring and supporting talent-recruitment efforts. The company will audit all company-mandated training materials and policies to ensure the absence of socially motivated messages, while staying in compliance with federal, state and local laws.
John Deere said that it is “reaffirming within the business that the existence of diversity quotas and pronoun identification have never been and are not company policy.”
However, the company said a diverse workforce “enables us to best meet our customers’ needs and because of that, we will continue to track and advance the diversity of our organization.”
John Deere representatives were not immediately available for comment.
The move comes after conservative influencer Robby Starbuck called out John Deere on social media for “going woke.”
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) July 9, 2024It’s time to expose John Deere.@JohnDeere has been one of the most beloved brands by conservative farmers but recently on CEO John May’s watch, they’ve gone woke.
Here’s some of what we found:
• Funding a pride event for kids as young as 3
• "Genderbread man" training
•… pic.twitter.com/nWnSUCW08K
Starbuck continued to criticize John Deere on social media on Thursday after the company clarified its stance.
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) July 18, 2024Meet Elliot Cobb, the Product Manager at John Deere for Global Legal Services. This is a piece Elliot wrote about coming back to the office from remote work in February of THIS YEAR.
It’s one of the most insane things I’ve ever read.
This is the culture DEI creates @JohnDeere. pic.twitter.com/FpkrECPLAn
Last month, John Deere named TikTok influencer Rex Curtiss as its “chief tractor officer,” making him the face of the brand’s social media channels. Jen Hartmann, the company’s global director of strategic PR and enterprise social media, said that John Deere wants to make its content culturally relevant for a Gen Z audience and tell stories about the company in “courageous and bold ways.”
Racepoint Global works with John Deere on PR.
Last month, rural retailer Tractor Supply also said it was eliminating all DEI roles, retiring DEI goals and no longer submitting data to LGBTQ+ advocacy group Human Rights Campaign. Tractor Supply will refocus on its internal team member engagement groups to mentor, network and support the business.
On July 1, Microsoft laid off a DEI team, according to a report from Business Insider.
