Fortune 500 DEI Disclosures Fell 65% in 2026

Fortune 500 companies cut public disclosure of diversity and inclusion efforts by 65% in 2026, according to the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s latest Corporate Equality Index data.

A press release from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRCF), attributes the pullback to a political and regulatory environment that leaves corporate leaders unsure how to communicate DEI while meeting expectations from employees, shareholders, and consumers. The shift matters because disclosure operates as a market signal and a governance artifact. When firms reduce public reporting, workers and investors lose a standardized way to compare employer protections and internal policy commitments.

Disclosure retreated faster than workplace conditions improved

HRCF reported that Fortune 500 participation in its index fell to 131 companies in 2026 from 377 in 2025, a decline the organization framed as a 65% drop in public documentation of diversity and inclusion practices. HRCF also noted that companies that refrained from disclosing DEI practices sit under federal contracts, linking disclosure decisions to government-facing compliance and procurement exposure.

Policy pullbacks correlate with higher reported stigma and exit risk

Worker survey data in the HRCF report showed 39.1% of U.S. workers said their employers scaled back DEI practices. The report found 54.2% of LGBT workers experienced stigma or bias at organizations that scaled back or dismantled DEI commitments, compared with 24.9% at organizations that continued diversity and inclusion practices.

Hostility indicators aligned with potential labor churn and output loss. HRCF reported that 86% of U.S. workers who described their workplace as hostile said they felt at risk of leaving their jobs, and almost half of those workers also reported decreased productivity.

The index functions as infrastructure for corporate signaling

RaShawn Hawkins, senior director of workplace equality at HRCF, said the data shows many LGBTQ+ workers feel “less safe and less certain about their place at work.” Hawkins also described the Corporate Equality Index as an operational tool that HR leaders use to “communicate clearly” when employees seek signals they can trust.

HRCF reported that companies with LGBTQ+ inclusive policies showed average net income more than eight times higher than their counterparts, tying internal policy posture to a financial performance gap in its dataset.