Stanley Black & Decker Confronts Boycott Over DEI Initiatives
Right-wing nonprofit Consumers' Research targets tool manufacturer for its pro-LGBTQ workplace policies and embrace of DEI initiatives.
Stanley Black & Decker, a maker of industrial tools and household hardware, is facing threats of a boycott from right-wing activists, who attacked the company for embracing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
The Connecticut-based company, whose brands include Black & Decker, Craftsman, DeWalt, and Lenox, has been accused of embracing “woke” ideology by Consumers’ Research, which encourages consumers not to patronize companies that have embraced “woke” internal policies.
Will Hild, the director of research at Consumers’ Research, took to X to lambaste the tool manufacturer for pushing left-wing cultural values that “have nothing to do with ensuring consumer satisfaction.”
Hild told the UK-based newspaper Daily Mail that Black & Decker’s “sole priority should be providing their customer base, professionals and DIYers alike, with the best tools and equipment possible.”
“Companies need to focus on serving their customers, not woke politicians,” he said.
Consumers’ Research claims Stanley Black & Decker has been prioritizing “race-based hiring, DEI goals, and ESG [environmental, social, and governance] policies” internally, accusing them of hiring and promoting — allegedly at the expense of white employees — people based on racial, religious, or other characteristics, as reported by the right-wing website BizPac Review.
The boycott comes at a time when the company has seen its stock value plummet in recent months, and is currently in the process of shuttering plants and distribution hubs to help turn a profit.
According to Consumers’ Research, Black & Decker aims to increase business with minority suppliers by at least 10 percent by 2025. The company also plans to donate at least $10.5 million to “racial equity-related organizations” by 2025, and to require compulsory “equity training” sessions for executives.
Conservatives also object to the company’s participation in the Human Rights Campaign’s “Corporate Equality Index,” an annual survey that ranks companies based on their LGBTQ-inclusive nondiscrimination policies and employee benefit policies for same-sex couples, LGBTQ-headed families, and transgender individuals.
Stanley Black & Decker earned a 100% rating on the CEI last year for policies like intersectionality training and “gender transition guidelines,” and LGBTQ-affirming employee benefit policies.
Consumers’ Research highlighted filings showing that the company spent $280,000 on lobbying federal lawmakers to pass the Equality Act, a comprehensive nondiscrimination bill.
Conservatives typically object to the Equality Act by claiming that the bill, which prohibits workplace and public accommodations-based discrimination against LGBTQ individuals, will lead to the eradication of women’s sports by allowing transgender athletes to compete in women’s events, even though the bill does not explicitly address sports participation.
Stanley Black & Decker has also faced public criticism for touting its DEI policies, “inclusive” workplace policies, and recognizing Pride Month and LGBTQ-themed events — which enrage social conservatives because they feel that LGBTQ-inclusive political and social agendas are being forced on them.
Hild encouraged consumers to express their displeasure with the company about its policies.
“History has taught us that these companies only listen and change their ways when consumers DEMAND it… Contact @StanleyBlkDeckr today and demand that they drop their ESG commitments and stop their DEI hiring practices today,” he wrote.
History has taught us that these companies only listen and change their ways when consumers DEMAND it…
Contact @StanleyBlkDeckr today and demand that they drop their ESG commitments and stop their DEI hiring practices today.
(860) 225-5111
— Will Hild (@WillHild) September 5, 2024
Other right-wing activists, including filmmaker Robby Starbuck have successfully targeted various companies, including Molson Coors, Ford Motor Company, Lowe’s Hardware, and Harley-Davidson, for promoting DEI initiatives and supporting the LGBTQ community. All have dropped their DEI initiatives and participation in HRC’s Corporate Equality Index in the past few weeks.
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