Diversity programs have become a tick-the-box exercise. They need to become more political, not less
- Written by: Celina McEwen, Senior Researcher in Sociology of Work, University of Technology Sydney
Diversity programs are a favourite target of right-wing populists who claim they represent a radical left agenda that is politicising workplaces.
Our research shows something quite different. Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) isn’t failing because it’s too political. It’s failing because it refuses to be political at all.
In a study just published in the academic journal Work, Employment and Society, we examined DEI practices in three organisations: a national sports organisation with around 100 staff, a technology services company with more than 500 employees, and a community liaison agency with 70 staff and DEI as its core mission.
They were selected because of their commitment to equality, being known and awarded for their best practice in DEI, and being presented as an inspiration to other organisations for how to do DEI well.
Across these very different workplaces, we found the same pattern. DEI programs created the appearance of progress, while leaving deeper inequalities untouched. As one participant put it:
We have the window dressing […] but behind the scenes, I can tell you, it’s nothing like that.
Australia is one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world, yet leadership positions remain overwhelmingly held by white men, and many workers from minority groups feel unsafe speaking up at work.
So why has DEI failed to deliver on equality?
Problem 1: DEI treats people as categories
DEI programs commonly focus on single labels. Diverse employees are categorised as, for example, “woman”, “Indigenous”, “LGBTQ+”, or “people with disability”. This oversimplifies people’s lived experiences and typically ignores class altogether.
In practice, identities overlap and affect each other in different ways for different people. But we found that managers tend to rely on superficial and apolitical understandings of diversity, leading them to avoid confronting 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 organisation told us:
most of [my male peers] are smug arseholes who look down at me […] I don’t get treated with the same respect as my peers by some of them and partly it’s obviously I’m Black, partly it’s I’m a woman.
Problem 2: DEI has become a corporate product
DEI has become commodified. Organisations buy standardised training packages, hire consultants, and tick boxes to show they are doing the right thing. But these programs rarely change how power operates inside the organisation.
In our study, workers labelled as “diverse” reported feeling pressure to present themselves in ways that were acceptable to the dominant culture. As one participant explained, women were accepted in senior positions provided they acted like “one of the boys”.
DEI becomes something to be managed and reported, not a pathway 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 shapes who gets promoted, whose voice is valued, and who is assumed can be a “leader”. Meanwhile, we found that organisations present themselves as tolerant while also limiting how much minority voices can challenge the status quo.
DEI can celebrate diversity while suppressing political demands to achieve real equality. When confronting the fact that all the senior women in her organisation were white, one person explained:
There’s been a lot of these things where I’ve spoken up [… but…] we’re seen as troublemakers.
But when DEI avoids talking about power, it creates a false sense of progress. This can be reinforced by management believing equality is improving simply because DEI activities exist.
What would a political version of DEI look like?
Right‑wing populists often claim DEI threatens traditional values or gives unfair advantages to minorities. But our research shows DEI rarely challenges anything. Instead, it protects existing hierarchies by avoiding the political questions equality requires.
Real equality demands confronting who holds 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 marginalised backgrounds.
DEI fails when it offers the comfort of visible action while preventing the structural transformation genuine equality demands. If we want workplaces that are fair, we need DEI that can challenge the status quo, redistribute power and confront injustice head-on.
The real question isn’t whether DEI is too “woke”, but whether organisations are brave enough to pursue real change.
Authors: Celina McEwen, Senior Researcher in Sociology of Work, University of Technology Sydney
