What has DEI — diversity, equity and inclusion — done for U.S. workers and employers?

President Trump's executive order banning diversity, equity and inclusion programs across the U.S. government is renewing debate over what DEI is and whether it has benefited workers and companies. 

DEI has its roots in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which barred employment discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion and other criteria. In the following decades, a range of policies have sought to root out bias in hiring, promote fairness in the workplace and open career pathways for people of color and for women, while also expanding to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

This push gained momentum after the 2020 murder of George Floyd, as politicians and social activists pressed companies to do their part in confronting systemic racism. But Mr. Trump's Jan. 20 order, issued on his first day back in office, criticized DEI as "illegal and immoral," while the following day a memo from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management called for all federal DEI employees to be placed on leave.