Tractor Supply Company announced sweeping changes to their employee relations including the elimination of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
The company announced their changes in a Thursday statement.
"We work hard to live up to our Mission and Values every day and represent the values of the communities and customers we serve," the company's statement read. "We have heard from customers that we have disappointed them. We have taken this feedback to heart."
Per their statement, the company will stop providing data to The Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ lobbying group, and will "refocus team member engagement groups on mentoring, networking and supporting the business."
Tractor Supply Company will also refocus on rural American priorities including agriculture education, animal welfare, and veteran causes. The company will also end their sponsorship of Pride festivals and voting campaigns. The company notably will "eliminate DEI roles" and "retire" current DEI goals while ensuring a respectful environment.
Tractor Supply then announced a withdrawal from their carbon emission goals and vowed to refocus their environmental protection initiatives to land and water conservation. Statement from Tractor Supply pic.twitter.com/ZMweR8JVuy
— Tractor Supply (@TractorSupply) June 27, 2024
"We will continue to listen to our customers and Team Members. Your trust and confidence in us are of the utmost importance, and we don’t take that lightly," the company wrote. "Rural communities are the backbone of our nation and what make America great. We are honored to be a part of them."
Initial boycott of Tractor Supply Company's internal employee practices came to light after activist and podcaster Robby Starbuck called out the company in a long X post earlier this month.
Starbuck's post highlighted the company's LGBTQIA+ training for employees, funding of Pride events, DEI initiatives, financial assistance for medical gender transition, and climate change activism.
"The kind of sex you like is not an appropriate topic for work. Events built around the kind of sex people like to have should not have kids at them and should not be funded with the money we spend at Tractor Supply," Starbuck wrote. It’s time to expose Tractor Supply.
It’s one of the most beloved brands in by conservatives but what do they REALLY stand for under CEO @hallawton’s leadership?
• LGBTQIA+ training for employees
• Funding pride/drag events
• They have a DEI Council
• Funding sex changes… pic.twitter.com/F4tvNmNZ9f
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) June 6, 2024
Last February, Tractor Supply Company was recognized by Bloomberg and Newsweek as a "diverse and inclusive workplace."
“Our deeply rooted Mission and Values are the foundation of who we are as an organization. They dictate that Tractor Supply prioritize a safe, respectful and inclusive work environment that values diversity of thought and perspective,” Tractor Supply Company's executive vice president and chief human resources officer Melissa Kersey said at the time. “We are honored that by adhering to our long-held standards, we continue to be among the top tier globally for gender equality and are recognized as a place where diversity is valued and appreciated.”
Tractor Supply Company, which has been in business for over 85 years, operates 2,233 locations across 49 states, according to its website.
