Pinterest lists DEI attacks as possible business risk in latest filing

Pinterest listed the latest attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion as a possible business risk in its latest 10-K filing. 

The company wrote in its filing to investors that if its efforts around DEI “are perceived as insufficient or overdone,” then it “may not be able to attract and retain talent” and that the company “may be subject to investigations, litigation, and other proceedings.” 

“Our brand and reputation and stock price may be harmed,” the company continued. 

A Pinterest spokesperson did not provide on the record comment when reached Friday.

The revelation in Pinterest’s filing comes just days after Target, a company that rolled back its DEI efforts after conservative backlash, was sued by its shareholders for not revealing the risk of its diversity initiatives. This caused consumer backlash and a drop in its stock price. As reported by Reuters, shareholders feel Target defrauded them by making them pay high stock prices while management misused “investor funds to serve political and social goals.” 

Pinterest is the latest company to re-evaluate its relationship with DEI as attacks on the practice heat up. Like many tech companies after the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, Pinterest showed a public commitment toward supporting diversity and inclusion and launched creator funds for underrepresented communities.

Pinterest has so far released its diversity report for the first half of 2024, with a full report scheduled for release in summer. It has released a diversity report since 2015, according to previous 10-K filings. 

DEI has come under fierce attack since President Trump took office last month. He issued an executive order banning DEI programs in the federal government and just this week, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi instructed the Department of Justice to “investigate, eliminate, and penalize illegal DEI” mandates and activities in private sector companies that receive federal funds.  

The federal mandates are in addition to the lawsuits that have perforated DEI in the past year. Conservative groups across the country have been suing or threatening to sue everything from banks, venture firms, and big box retailers, to end its diversity programs and mandates. 

The result has been a rollback of DEI initiatives that were launched in the past few years. In tech, some companies have started to drop some DEI policies as they seek to avoid conservative backlash and ease relations with the new Trump administration. 

Meta, Amazon, and Google all recently dropped or adjusted some of its DEI programs. As first noted by newsletter writer Michelle Leder, Google made no mention of diversity in its latest 10-K filing, despite the fact it was mentioned eight times in its 2023 form as the company said it was “committed to making diversity, equity, and inclusion” a part of everything it did.

“We’re committed to creating a workplace where all our employees can succeed and have equal opportunities, and over the last year we’ve been reviewing our programs designed to help us get there,” said Google spokesperson Emily Hawkins in an email to TechCrunch. “We’ve updated our 10-k language to reflect this, and as a federal contractor, our teams are also evaluating changes required following recent court decisions and executive orders on this topic.”

Pinterest’s latest 10-K form is also a far cry from the one it filed for 2023, where the word was also mentioned at least eight times (rather than once like in its latest 2024 filing), and where the company said it would also “strive to create an inclusive and diverse workplace” to empower employees. 

Updated with comment from Google and corrected to reflect that Pinterest released its diversity report for the first half of 2024.