World of HR: Fewer European companies mention “diversity and inclusion” on earnings calls than in 2021

Companies on the other side of the Atlantic are quietly removing DEI language from their quarterly earnings reports.

Where in the world? Some European companies appear to be treading lightly around DEI, according to a recent Bloomberg analysis. Mentions of DEI in earnings calls for Europe’s stock market index, the Stoxx Europe 600, have been steadily falling since hitting a high of 71 mentions in Q1 2021, shortly after the murder of George Floyd. There have been just two mentions of DEI during Q1 2025 calls, the lowest level since Q2 2020, when there were six mentions.

While many European companies—including those with a large US presence, like Aldi and Deloitte—seem to be keeping their DEI policies for now, some experts fear the ripple effects of the Trump administration’s anti-DEI actions on foreign employers.

“We have this transatlantic tsunami hitting European companies, and the key to understand that is whether these multinational enterprises have an interest in contracting with the US government. If they do, they will typically be influenced by the executive orders and they will comply,” Matteo Winkler, associate professor at HEC Paris, told Bloomberg.

Satellite view. The findings reflect what’s been happening in the US, where mentions of DEI have been declining since Q3 2023, according to Axios.

Amazon, GM, and Pepsi recently erased their diversity commitments from their annual reports. Even JPMorgan, which notably doubled down on its commitment to DEI last month, removed corresponding language from its investor report.

Meanwhile, wider DEI rollbacks in the US have seen companies scrubbing DEI language from their websites, cutting ties with external workplace benchmarking reports, and ending diversity goals. The Trump administration has asserted it wants all DEI practices at private companies eliminated, though it remains unclear what the administration counts as DEI.