Diversity programs have become a tick-the-box exercise. They need to become more political, not less

Diversity programs are a favorite target of right-wing populists who claim to represent a radical left agenda that politicizes the workplace.

Our research shows something completely different. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) doesn’t fail because it’s too political. It fails because it refuses to be political in the first place.

In a study just published in the academic journal Work, Employment and Society, we examined DEI practices in three organizations: a national sports organization with approximately 100 employees, a technology services company with more than 500 employees, and a community liaison agency with 70 employees and DEI as a core mission.

They were selected for their commitment to equity, for being known and rewarded for their DEI best practices, and for being presented as inspirations to other organizations on how to do DEI well.

We found the same pattern in these very different workplaces. DEI programs gave the appearance of progress while leaving deeper inequities unaddressed. As one participant put it:

We have the window decorations […] But behind the scenes, I can tell you, that’s not the case at all.

Australia is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world, yet leadership positions remain overwhelmingly held by white men, and many minority employees feel unsafe speaking out at work.

So why has DEI failed to achieve equality?

Problem 1: DEI treats people as categories

DEI programs typically focus on individual labels. For example, diverse employees are categorized as ‘female’, ‘indigenous’, ‘LGBTQ+’ or ‘people with disabilities’. This simplifies people’s lived experiences and usually ignores class altogether.

In practice, identities overlap and influence each other in different ways for different people. But we found that managers tend to rely on superficial and apolitical views on diversity, avoiding confrontation with the real experiences that shape people’s lives at work.

The result is that DEI can reinforce stereotypes rather than challenge them.

As the only Indigenous person in a leadership position at one organization told us:

most [my male peers] are smug bastards looking down on me […] I am not treated with the same respect by some of them as my peers and partly it is clear that I am black, partly I am a woman.

Problem 2: DEI has become a corporate product

DEI has become a commodity. Organizations buy standardized training packages, hire consultants and tick boxes to show they are doing the right thing. But these programs rarely change the way power functions within the organization.

In our study, employees labeled as “diverse” reported feeling pressure to present themselves in a way that was acceptable to the dominant culture. As one participant explained, women were allowed into senior positions on the condition that they behaved like “one of the guys.”

DEI becomes something to be managed and reported, not a path to justice and equality.

Problem 3: DEI avoids talking about power

Our research confirmed that inequality is built into the everyday structures of workplaces. It determines who gets promoted, whose voice is valued, and who is seen as capable of being a “leader.” Meanwhile, we found that organizations present themselves as tolerant while simultaneously limiting the extent to which minority voices can challenge the status quo.

DEI can celebrate diversity while suppressing political demands to achieve true equality. When confronted with the fact that all the senior women in her organization were white, one person explained:

There have been many of these things where I have spoken [… but…] we are seen as troublemakers.

But when DEI avoids talking about power, it creates a false sense of progress. This can be reinforced by management believing that equity improves simply because DEI activities exist.

What would a political version of DEI look like?

Right-wing populists often claim that DEI threatens traditional values ​​or provides unfair advantages to minorities. But our research shows that DEI rarely calls anything into question. Instead, it protects existing hierarchies by avoiding the political questions that equality requires.

True equality requires a confrontation with who has power, who benefits from the current system and who is excluded. DEI programs avoid these questions because they risk upsetting people in leadership. And those leaders are people who rarely come from marginalized backgrounds.

DEI fails when it provides the comfort of visible action while preventing the structural transformation that true equality requires. If we want fair workplaces, we need DEI that can challenge the status quo, redistribute power, and tackle injustice head-on.

The real question is not whether DEI is too “woke,” but whether organizations are brave enough to pursue real change.