DENVER — Employer diversity, equity and inclusion efforts may be facing increased scrutiny, but there are a number of steps HR professionals can take to keep their programs out of critics’ crosshairs, panelists told attendees at the American Bar Association’s annual labor and employment law conference Thursday.
Employers still need to solve the problems a DEI program aims to solve, said Amanda Machin, of counsel at law firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, but they need a nuanced solution – one that doesn’t take shortcuts.
Any type of numerical goals about workforce diversity “are going to be problematic going forward,” Elizabeth Mabey, senior labor and employment counsel at manufacturer Johns Manville, said.
Diverse candidate slate policies may similarly draw more scrutiny than they have in the past, according to Susan Garea, shareholder at law firm Beeson, Tayer and Bodine. Recent “EEOC guidance makes clear they’re going after that concept as prohibited by Title VII,” she said.
Mentoring, networking or training opportunities in which participants are selected based on protected characteristics are risky and may invite backlash, Mabey said.
Not using protected status as a selection criteria is really important today, Machin agreed, “and has always been really important.”
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