(Reuters) – Apple’s (NASDAQ: ) board of directors has recommended that investors vote against a shareholder proposal to eliminate the company’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, according to a proxy. filing from the company.

The National Center for Public Policy, a conservative think tank, submitted a proposal that the company is considering to eliminate the “Inclusion & Diversity program, policies, departments and goals.”

The proposal cites recent Supreme Court decisions, and makes the argument that DEI places “litigation, reputational and financial risks on companies” and makes Apple more vulnerable to lawsuits.

Apple responded that it had a well-established compliance program and the proposal was unnecessary. It added that the shareholder proposal was an inappropriate attempt to manage Apple’s business strategy.

“Apple is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in recruitment, hiring, training, or promotion on any basis protected by law”, the iPhone maker said in the filing. The news was first reported by TechCrunch.

Several major companies including Meta (NASDAQ: ) and Amazon (NASDAQ: ) have halted diversity programs ahead of Republican Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency as conservative opposition to such initiatives grows stronger. .

Conservative groups have criticized DEI programs and threatened to sue companies over them, spurred by a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision that undermined affirmative action in university admissions decisions.

The changes reflect how some of America’s biggest businesses are reacting to a larger conservative backlash against diversity initiatives, which has increased following widespread protests following the police killing of George Floyd and other Black Americans in 2020.