Affirmative action ruling could place target on US corporate diversity programs

An Asian-American supporter of affirmative action policies protests outside the U.S. Supreme Court a day after the court struck down race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, effectively prohibiting affirmative action policies long used to raise the number of Black, Hispanic and other underrepresented minority students on American campuses, in Washington, U.S. June 30, 2023. REUTERS/Jim Bourg

(Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down race-conscious policies in college admissions includes some warnings to companies about the legal limits of workforce diversity efforts and is likely to fuel challenges to them, experts said.

Thursday’s ruling has no direct impact on employers because it does not involve workplace bias laws. But in finding that Harvard University and the University of North Carolina unlawfully considered race as a factor in the admissions process, the court may have laid the groundwork for future challenges to corporate diversity initiatives.