Mattel may have made a killing on its diverse Barbie line and the movie of the same name that took the world by storm, but it’s also joining a long line of businesses in their pro-diversity pullback. Mattel’s DEI policy has taken a hit, winding back the company’s commitments to the goals it had once prided itself on.
A new report by Bloomberg Law explained that as a result of potential DEI investor concerns, Mattel removed all references to these initiatives from its two recent investor filings. The company’s proxy statement to shareholders this time around was very different from the one presented last year. As Mattel stops DEI reporting in 2025, it appears that the policies of diversity and equity are truly dying down in the corporate world.
Are Mattel’s DEI policies set to change entirely? The company dropped its DEI updates for investors so a greater shift may be coming. (Image: Pexels)
Mattel Retreats on DEI Amidst Investor Pressure: Times Are Changing
Mattel is stopping its DEI reporting in 2025—that’s where the story begins. In a proxy statement shared with shareholders before the May 28 meeting, it was found that the company had excluded all mention of “supporting diverse, equitable, and inclusive communities,” which was part of the statement presented last year.
Since 2022, Mattel’s DEI reporting also included a chart on the diversity of the board members ever since Nasdaq made it a requirement, but the detail is no longer required. As a result, Mattel’s DEI disclosures on board diversity were found to be missing as well. It’s unclear if this will also mean an eventual change to the composition of its board, but as of now, it is only the reporting of data that has changed.
While Mattel’s Barbie dolls still hold the title of the “ most diverse doll line,” it seems that may no longer be a goal for the company’s internal policies. There are no public DEI corporate policies to be found on the company website, although the company makes mention of inclusion and its goal of “fostering a culture where all employees have the opportunity to realize their full potential.”
Investor Concerns Around DEI Remain a Focal Point for Businesses
As Mattel stops DEI reporting in 2025, there has been a general countrywide shift among businesses and their vocal commitments to diversity. The changing political climate has made it controversial for businesses to explicitly showcase DEI policies, especially considering that political groups have been urging them to rethink their stance on the issue.
Investors are growing worried that in 2025, the commitment to DEI might cause both the government and its customers to turn away their support for the brand. Some businesses like Costco and Apple have held off on giving in to the pressure of scaling back diversion and inclusion policies, but others like Target, Walmart, and Amazon have scrubbed all evidence of DEI from their books.
Costco saw a lot of support online for its commitment to DEI, but it’s unclear which way the axe might swing next. All businesses are attempting to address investor concerns surrounding DEI, Mattel included, but there is still some uncertainty on how to proceed.
What Consequences Will Mattel Face for Retreating from DEI?
The exclusion of DEI terms from Mattel’s documentation may be a small and subtle shift, but it has greater implications for the company and its employees. While a company like McDonald’s might be able to backtrack from its DEI commitments more easily, for Mattel, a brand that has built itself on the back of diversity principles through its Barbie line—even before it became trendy to claim to be a diverse company—it’s a riskier bet.
Will its consumers take well to the erasure of DEI language from Mattel records? Will this news even trickle down to its core consumer base? The chatter on the topic is currently low, so we may not see any major consequences of Mattel dropping DEI. There has been talk of a boycott on social media forums like Reddit, but it’s too soon to see whether this will materialize into active action.
Investors may be satisfied with Mattel’s decision, which will give them the confidence the company needs to commit to the exclusion. Mattel has not explicitly announced its retreat from DEI policies yet, which may be the direction many other organizations go as well.
What HR Needs to Learn from the Mattel DEI Disclosures Exclusions
With Mattel retreating for DEI to submit to investor pressures, other major businesses will soon have to take a stance on the matter one way or another. HR professionals will need to start adapting their own strategic models and determine a strategic roadmap on how they intend to tackle the issue.
As evident from Mattel’s DEI retreat, investor sentiments are affected by a company’s stance on major issues and policies. However, that’s not all. Employees and customers are also greatly affected by how HR handles the conversations around DEI, as it will have an inevitable effect on them, their role in the workplace, and the security of their jobs.
HR teams need to learn from industry-wide trends and sufficiently prepare for what’s to come.
- Organizations will need to leverage data and understand the situation—how employees feel, how their target customers feel, and how it will have an impact on their branding—before making a decision
- Employers and HR teams need to be very clear on where they stand on DEI matters and communicate it to workers in clear terms
- HR teams need to rework the language they use on the topic and shift to an inclusion policy at the least to ensure that discrimination of any form does not start festering within the workforce
- All members of the HR team need to be trained on the new policies and how they communicate them to workers
- HR professionals will need to keep an out for federal and state legislations and recommendations to incorporate it at all levels of the organization
- All documents, websites, job offers, recruitment posts, and other material in association with the workplace needs to be updated with the company’s stance on the matter so that employees are aware of what to expect from their employer
- HR teams have to work on the company’s behind-the-scenes effort to enhance a sense of community among workers during these changing times
- Employee engagement, benefits, and other wellness initiatives should be equally distributed to all workers and especially prioritized during times of change
- Managers should be trained on building a supporting, inclusive work culture, even if the overall company stance on diversity goals change
- HR leaders need to prepare for employee pushback and prepare their response to employees in advance, as there will be some degree of unrest among them
The change to Mattel’s DEI disclosures may appear to be a small matter at first glance, but such changes will have a ripple effect on the rest of the business and its brand. Mattel won’t be the last company to retreat from DEI under investor pressure, and HR teams need to study the situation better to prepare their own changes accordingly.
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