U.S. wireless carrier AT&T has pledged to drop its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives as it seeks the Trump administration’s approval to acquire wireless spectrum assets.
In a Dec. 2 letter to Trump-appointed FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, the Dallas-based telecom giant said the legal environment around DEI programs has shifted, The New York Post reported. The company, which employs more than 110,000 people in the U.S., emphasized its longstanding policy of advancing and compensating workers based on merit, noting that it will no longer implement hiring or supplier quotas tied to race, gender, or sexual orientation.
“We have … adjusted our employment and business practices to ensure that they comply with all applicable laws and related requirements, including ending DEI-related policies … not just in name but in substance,” David McAtee, senior executive vice president and general counsel at AT&T, wrote in the letter.
The pledge follows AT&T’s November 2024 agreement to buy wireless spectrum licenses from U.S. Cellular for $1.02 billion, a deal that still needs FCC approval. Under the Trump administration, the FCC has required telecom companies to drop DEI programs to move transactions forward.
T-Mobile and Verizon have already scrapped their DEI initiatives while pursuing major deals, including T-Mobile’s $4.4 billion purchase of most of U.S. Cellular’s operations and its joint venture with KKR to acquire Metronet. Verizon also ended its DEI program before the FCC approved its $20 billion acquisition of Frontier Communications.
In February, Carr also launched a probe into Comcast’s DEI efforts.
Carr said AT&T’s letter reaffirmed its earlier pledge to eliminate DEI-related policies, following conservative backlash over a former employee training program that reportedly described racism as a “uniquely white trait.” Employees were urged
to review materials related to critical race theory, including one resource that claimed, “White America, if you want to know who’s responsible for racism, look in the mirror,” according to City Journal’s Christopher Rufo.Following the announcement, civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump criticized AT&T on social media, calling it the latest example of how Trump’s crackdown on DEI has turned diversity initiatives into a “bargaining chip” for companies.
Despite ending DEI programs, AT&T will maintain its employee groups, some of which have existed for over 50 years, McAtee confirms. These networks — such as women’s or Black employee groups — focus on protected characteristics, but staff can join freely without regard to demographics. The company also announced that it will stop participating in surveys that focus on protected characteristics.
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