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By ALEXANDRA OLSON and CATHY BUSSEWITZ NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart’s sweeping rollback of its diversity policies is the strongest indication yet of a profound shift taking hold at U.S. companies that are revaluating the legal and political risks associated with bold programs to bolster historically underrepresented groups in business. The changes announced by the world’s biggest retailer followed a string of legal victories by conservative groups that have filed an onslaught of lawsuits challenging corporate and federal programs aimed at elevating minority and women-owned businesses and employees. The risk associated with some of programs crystalized with the election of former President Donald Trump, whose administration is certain to make dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion programs a priority. Trump’s incoming deputy chief of policy will be his former adviser Stephen Miller , who leads a group called America First Legal that has aggressively challenged corporate DEI policies. “There has been a lot of reassessment of risk looking at programs that could be deemed to constitute reverse discrimination,” said Allan Schweyer, principal researcher the Human Capital Center at the Conference Board. “This is another domino to fall and it is a rather large domino,” he added. Among other changes, Walmart said it will no longer give priority treatment to suppliers owned by women or minorities. The company also will not renew a five-year commitment for a racial equity center set up in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd. And it pulled out of a prominent gay rights index . Schweyer said the biggest trigger for companies making such changes is simply a reassessment of their legal risk exposure, which began after U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in June 2023 that ended affirmative action in college admissions. Since then, conservative groups using similar arguments have secured court victories against various diversity programs, especially those that steer contracts to minority or women-owned businesses. Most recently, the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty won a victory in a case against the U.S. Department of Transportation over its use of a program that gives priority to minority-owned businesses when it awards contracts. Companies are seeing a big legal risk in continuing with DEI efforts, said Dan Lennington, a deputy counsel at the institute. His organization says it has identified more than 60 programs in the federal government that it considers discriminatory, he said. “We have a legal landscape within the entire federal government, all three branches — the U.S. Supreme Court, the Congress and the President — are all now firmly pointed in the direction towards equality of individuals and individualized treatment of all Americans, instead of diversity, equity and inclusion treating people as members of racial groups,” Lennington said. The Trump administration is also likely to take direct aim at DEI initiatives through executive orders and other policies that affect private companies, especially federal contractors. “The impact of the election on DEI policies is huge. It can’t be overstated,” said Jason Schwartz, co-chair of the Labor & Employment Practice Group at law firm Gibson Dunn. With Miller returning to the White House, rolling back DEI initiatives is likely to be a priority, Schwartz said. “Companies are trying to strike the right balance to make clear they’ve got an inclusive workplace where everyone is welcome, and they want to get the best talent, while at the same time trying not to alienate various parts of their employees and customer base who might feel one way or the other. It’s a virtually impossible dilemma,” Schwartz said. A recent survey by Pew Research Center showed that workers are divided on the merits of DEI policies. While still broadly popular, the share of workers who said focusing on workplace diversity was mostly a good thing fell to 52% in the November survey, compared to 56% in a similar survey in February 2023. Rachel Minkin, a research associated at Pew called it a small but significant shift in short amount of time. There will be more companies pulling back from their DEI policies, but it likely won’t be a retreat across the board, said David Glasgow, executive director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at New York University. “There are vastly more companies that are sticking with DEI,” Glasgow said. “The only reason you don’t hear about it is most of them are doing it by stealth. They’re putting their heads down and doing DEI work and hoping not to attract attention.” Glasgow advises organizations to stick to their own core values, because attitudes toward the topic can change quickly in the span of four years. “It’s going to leave them looking a little bit weak if there’s a kind of flip-flopping, depending on whichever direction the political winds are blowing,” he said. One reason DEI programs exist is because without those programs, companies may be vulnerable to lawsuits for traditional discrimination. “Really think carefully about the risks in all directions on this topic,” Glasgow said. Walmart confirmed will no longer consider race and gender as a litmus test to improve diversity when it offers supplier contracts. Last fiscal year, Walmart said it spent more than $13 billion on minority, women or veteran-owned good and service suppliers. It was unclear how its relationships with such business would change going forward. Organizations that that have partnered with Walmart on its diversity initiatives offered a cautious response. The Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, a non-profit that last year named Walmart one of America’s top corporation for women-owned enterprises, said it was still evaluating the impact of Walmart’s announcement. Pamela Prince-Eason, the president and CEO of the organization, said she hoped Walmart’s need to cater to its diverse customer base will continue to drive contracts to women-owned suppliers even if the company no longer has explicit dollar goals. “I suspect Walmart will continue to have one of the most inclusive supply chains in the World,” Prince-Eason wrote. “Any retailer’s ability to serve the communities they operate in will continue to value understanding their customers, (many of which are women), in order to better provide products and services desired and no one understands customers better than Walmart.” Walmart’s announcement came after the company spoke directly with conservative political commentator and activist Robby Starbuck, who has been going after corporate DEI policies, calling out individual companies on the social media platform X. Several of those companies have subsequently announced that they are pulling back their initiatives, including Ford , Harley-Davidson, Lowe’s and Tractor Supply . Walmart confirmed to The Associated Press that it will better monitor its third-party marketplace items to make sure they don’t feature sexual and transgender products aimed at minors. The company also will stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign’s annual benchmark index that measures workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ employees. A Walmart spokesperson added that some of the changes were already in progress and not as a result of conversations that it had with Starbuck. RaShawn “Shawnie” Hawkins, senior director of the HRC Foundation’s Workplace Equality Program, said companies that “abandon” their commitments workplace inclusion policies “are shirking their responsibility to their employees, consumers, and shareholders.” She said the buying power of LGBTQ customers is powerful and noted that the index will have record participation of more than 1,400 companies in 2025.
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Dean McCullough took on his third Bushtucker Trial in tonight’s episode (November 21) of I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! Having quit his first trial as he shouted “I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!” and only managed to secure two out of 10 stars in a trial with GK Barry, he was out to prove himself tonight. His third trial saw him locked in a box, similar to his two other trials, where he had to turn stars off a screw using only his mouth and tongue while being accompanied by various critters. Throughout the trial, he had to move from box to box and was met with different critters in each one. He also had to make a chemical reaction while ants were biting his hands. Since Dean is frightened of creepy crawlies and bigger critters, he asked Ant and Dec not to tell him what was joining him in the box which was secured around his head. The trial called Lethal Lab saw the BBC Radio 1 presenter take four stars back to camp. Each star means more food for the celebrity campmates while no stars means they have to eat rice and beans. Going back to camp was a much better experience for Dean this time around as he was able to celebrate with his campmates, knowing he’d supplied food for the camp’s evening meal. On arriving back to camp, Dean was ecstatic with his success in Lethal Lab and the other celebrities celebrated his win with him. After earning four stars, Dean had fish guts put inside the box with him and quit the trial with "I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!" Meanwhile, the campmates were ordered to give up their contraband after McCullough smuggled teabags into the jungle, while Tulisa Contostavlos gave up a bag of seasoning which radio presenter Melvin Odoom had distributed to her. Viewers took to social media platform X to share their thoughts on Dean’s performance. One said the trial was easy: "So they gave him the easiest challenges we’ve ever seen on I’m a Celeb so he can win some stars lol". Another person commented: “He’s actually doing it, I’m surprised." A third said: "Are you serious?? On the fish guts!" The latest series of I’m A Celebrity has a wide range of popular stars including Danny Jones, Coleen Rooney, Melvin Odoom, Oti Mabuse and Barry McGuigan to name a few. I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! airs every night at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX.NEWS HIGHLIGHTS: LEHI, Utah and SHERMAN, Texas , Dec. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Texas Instruments (TI) (Nasdaq: TXN) and the U.S. Department of Commerce today announced an award agreement of up to $1.6 billion in direct funding through the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act, following the preliminary memorandum of terms announced in August 2024 . The funding will help support three of TI's new 300mm wafer fabs currently under construction in Texas and Utah. Support from the CHIPS Act, including the 25% investment tax credit, will help TI provide a geopolitically dependable supply of essential analog and embedded processing semiconductors. "As the largest analog and embedded processing semiconductor manufacturer in the U.S., TI is uniquely positioned to provide dependable, low-cost 300mm semiconductor manufacturing capacity at scale," said Haviv Ilan, president and CEO of Texas Instruments. "The increasing number of electronic devices in our lives depend on our foundational chips, and we appreciate the support from the U.S. government to make the semiconductor ecosystem stronger and more resilient." The CHIPS Act direct funding will support TI's investments through 2029 for three large-scale 300mm wafer fabs in Sherman, Texas (SM1 and SM2), and Lehi, Utah (LFAB2). Together, these fabs will manufacture tens of millions of analog and embedded processing chips every day that are critical to a variety of end markets, including automotive, industrial, personal electronics, communications equipment and enterprise systems. Specifically, the CHIPS Act direct funding will be distributed upon completion of project milestones, supporting: These connected, multi-fab sites in Texas and Utah will benefit from shared infrastructure, talent and technology sharing, and a strong network of existing suppliers and community partners. Combined, TI's three new fabs in Texas and Utah will create 2,000 company jobs, along with thousands of indirect jobs for construction, suppliers and supporting industries. TI is also investing in building its future workforce. As part of the CHIPS Act award agreement, TI will also receive up to $10 million for workplace development efforts in Texas and Utah . Consistent with TI's longstanding commitment to responsible, sustainable manufacturing and environmental stewardship, the company's 300mm wafer fabs will be entirely powered by renewable electricity. Additionally, TI is committed to reducing overall water consumption across its operations, endeavoring to achieve a 70% water reuse capability in Sherman, Texas , and Lehi , Utah. All of TI's new 300mm fabs are also designed to meet LEED Gold standards for structural efficiency and sustainability. Learn more: Notice regarding forward-looking statements This release includes forward-looking statements intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by phrases such as TI or its management "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "foresees," "forecasts," "estimates" or other words or phrases of similar import. Similarly, statements herein that describe TI's business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals also are forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. See Item 1A of TI's most recent Form 10-K for a detailed discussion of risk factors that could cause results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this release are made only as of the date of this release, and we undertake no obligation to update the forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. If we do update any forward-looking statement, you should not infer that we will make additional updates with respect to that statement or any other forward-looking statement. About Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (Nasdaq: TXN) is a global semiconductor company that designs, manufactures, and sells analog and embedded processing chips for markets such as industrial, automotive, personal electronics, communications equipment and enterprise systems. At our core, we have a passion to create a better world by making electronics more affordable through semiconductors. This passion is alive today as each generation of innovation builds upon the last to make our technology more reliable, more affordable and lower power, making it possible for semiconductors to go into electronics everywhere. Learn more at TI.com . View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/texas-instruments-announces-award-agreement-for-chips-and-science-act-funding-302337541.html SOURCE Texas InstrumentsLAS VEGAS — Formula 1 on Monday at last said it will expand its grid in 2026 to make room for an American team that is partnered with General Motors. "As the pinnacle of motorsports, F1 demands boundary-pushing innovation and excellence. It's an honor for General Motors and Cadillac to join the world's premier racing series, and we're committed to competing with passion and integrity to elevate the sport for race fans around the world," GM President Mark Reuss said. "This is a global stage for us to demonstrate GM's engineering expertise and technology leadership at an entirely new level." The approval ends years of wrangling that launched a U.S. Justice Department investigation into why Colorado-based Liberty Media, the commercial rights holder of F1, would not approve the team initially started by Michael Andretti. Andretti in September stepped aside from leading his namesake organization, so the 11th team will be called Cadillac F1 and be run by new Andretti Global majority owners Dan Towriss and Mark Walter. The team will use Ferrari engines its first two years until GM has a Cadillac engine built for competition in time for the 2028 season. Towriss is the the CEO and president of Group 1001 and entered motorsports via Andretti's IndyCar team when he signed on financial savings platform Gainbridge as a sponsor. Towriss is now a major part of the motorsports scene with ownership stakes in both Spire Motorsports' NASCAR team and Wayne Taylor Racing's sports car team. Walter is the chief executive of financial services firm Guggenheim Partners and the controlling owner of both the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers and Premier League club Chelsea. "We're excited to partner with General Motors in bringing a dynamic presence to Formula 1," Towriss said. "Together, we're assembling a world-class team that will embody American innovation and deliver unforgettable moments to race fans around the world." Mario Andretti, the 1978 F1 world champion, will have an ambassador role with Cadillac F1. But his son, Michael, will have no official position with the organization now that he has scaled back his involvement with Andretti Global. "The Cadillac F1 Team is made up of a strong group of people that have worked tirelessly to build an American works team," Michael Andretti posted on social media. "I'm very proud of the hard work they have put in and congratulate all involved on this momentous next step. I will be cheering for you!" The approval has been in works for weeks but was held until after last weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix to not overshadow the showcase event of the Liberty Media portfolio. Max Verstappen won his fourth consecutive championship in Saturday night's race, the third and final stop in the United States for the top motorsports series in the world. Grid expansion in F1 is both infrequent and often unsuccessful. Four teams were granted entries in 2010 that should have pushed the grid to 13 teams and 26 cars for the first time since 1995. One team never made it to the grid and the other three had vanished by 2017. There is only one American team on the current F1 grid — owned by California businessman Gene Haas — but it is not particularly competitive and does not field American drivers. Andretti's dream was to field a truly American team with American drivers. The fight to add this team has been going on for three-plus years, and F1 initially denied the application despite approval from F1 sanctioning body FIA. The existing 10 teams, who have no voice in the matter, also largely opposed expansion because of the dilution in prize money and the billions of dollars they've already invested in the series. Andretti in 2020 tried and failed to buy the existing Sauber team. From there, he applied for grid expansion and partnered with GM, the top-selling manufacturer in the United States. The inclusion of GM was championed by the FIA and president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who said Michael Andretti's application was the only one of seven applicants to meet all required criteria to expand F1's current grid. "General Motors is a huge global brand and powerhouse in the OEM world and is working with impressive partners," Ben Sulayem said Monday. "I am fully supportive of the efforts made by the FIA, Formula 1, GM and the team to maintain dialogue and work towards this outcome of an agreement in principle to progress this application." Despite the FIA's acceptance of Andretti and General Motors from the start, F1 wasn't interested in Andretti — but did want GM. At one point, F1 asked GM to find another team to partner with besides Andretti. GM refused and F1 said it would revisit the Andretti application if and when Cadillac had an engine ready to compete. "Formula 1 has maintained a dialogue with General Motors, and its partners at TWG Global, regarding the viability of an entry following the commercial assessment and decision made by Formula 1 in January 2024," F1 said in a statement. "Over the course of this year, they have achieved operational milestones and made clear their commitment to brand the 11th team GM/Cadillac, and that GM will enter as an engine supplier at a later time. Formula 1 is therefore pleased to move forward with this application process." Yet another major shift in the debate over grid expansion occurred earlier this month with the announced resignation of Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei, who was largely believed to be one of the biggest opponents of the Andretti entry. "With Formula 1's continued growth plans in the US, we have always believed that welcoming an impressive US brand like GM/Cadillac to the grid and GM as a future power unit supplier could bring additional value and interest to the sport," Maffei said. "We credit the leadership of General Motors and their partners with significant progress in their readiness to enter Formula 1." Get local news delivered to your inbox!
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