T-Mobile halts diversity policies after FCC's demands

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T-Mobile US Inc. has rolled back policies related to diversity, equity and inclusion to appease the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, who has made clear that merger deals won’t be approved without taking such steps.

“We recognize that the legal and policy landscape surrounding DEI under federal law has changed,” T-Mobile wrote in a letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr dated July 8. The company has conducted a comprehensive review of T-Mobile’s policies, programs and activities and as a result is ending its DEI-related policies “in name and substance,” according to the letter.

Earlier this year, Carr said the FCC was prepared to block mergers and acquisition proposals from companies that promote “invidious” DEI policies. T-Mobile has two deals that are awaiting the FCC’s approval. One is its planned purchase of US Cellular Corp.’s wireless operations and some of its spectrum assets. T-Mobile is also awaiting FCC approval to buy fiber-optic internet service provider Metronet, through a joint venture with KKR & Co.

In May, Verizon Communications Inc. won FCC approval for its acquisition of Frontier Communications Parent Inc. after agreeing to demands to pare back DEI in line with Trump administration policies.

Shares of T-Mobile were down 1.6% in New York Wednesday afternoon.

T-Mobile said it has redirected the “handful” of employees who focused on DEI policies to concentrate on employee culture and engagement instead. “As a result, T-Mobile will no longer have any individual roles or teams focused on DEI,” it said. The company is also scrubbing any references to DEI on its website and from any future communications.

In terms of recruiting, the company said it’s committed to ensuring that job opportunities are accessible to everyone and emphasized that it doesn’t favor one demographic group over another, or use hiring quotas based on race, sex or other characteristics.

The company said it would make mentorship programs available to everyone and doesn’t tie internships or career development opportunities to any protected characteristics, including race, sex or sexual orientation.