Latest news with #StopWOKEAct
Winnipeg Free Press
10-05-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
DEI in spotlight at Quadrant Private Wealth Behavioral Finance Conference
The question posed at a Winnipeg conference — 'Do investors value DEI?' — had a short answer: it depends. But there was also a long answer, which Hoa Briscoe-Tran detailed in a yet-to-be-published academic paper. His Friday presentation at the Quadrant Private Wealth Behavioural Finance Conference comes amid U.S. government administration-ordered cuts to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Meta and Walmart have axed their DEI programs in the U.S. Meanwhile, some Manitoba businesses with U.S. dealings have quieted their own DEI promotion south of the border to keep peace, according to the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce. 'You (can) see how the U.S. could impact multiple countries,' Briscoe-Tran said at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg. The assistant professor in finance at the University of Alberta and a partner studied immediate reaction to Florida's 'Stop WOKE Act,' which curbed workplaces from teaching about privilege and oppression among races and genders. The researchers found, within the first week of the act's 2021 announcement, Florida firms saw a cumulative equity market value decline compared to other United States companies. However, the impact hit businesses with pro-social investors harder. Some Florida companies' values increased in the short term of the act's announcement. The outcome depended on companies' investors, Briscoe-Tran said. A U.S. court temporarily blocked the law's enforcement in August 2022. Once the blockade arrived, negative investment impacts on Florida businesses reversed, per Briscoe-Tran and co-author Stephan Siegel's research. Briscoe-Tran wasn't aware of any Manitoba businesses backing away from their DEI activities. Some policies are performative and inefficient, he noted. He said he is 'hopeful' any reductions in DEI initiatives will bounce back, because the main purpose — greater inclusion and awareness — is a good one. Effective and efficient DEI strategies are key, Briscoe-Tran added. Broadly, Winnipeg businesses have not cut their DEI programming. Those with United States operations — especially those dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump's administration — have rebranded how they talk about DEI policies, said Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce president Loren Remillard. 'It's not a withdrawal,' he said Friday. 'It's just a recognition that in the United States right now, the Americans are moving in a different direction. No one wants to get in a confrontation with the U.S. government or clients.' A Winnipeg-based company in the U.S. might highlight its 'growing pipeline of talent,' without mentioning its DEI processes, Remillard explained. It's a departure from companies' marketing efforts showing diverse hiring practices. Businesses consider the cultural norms of the country they're operating in, Remillard noted. In 2023, General Electric added a pride flag to its logo in North America; it didn't in Saudi Arabia, the Daily Mail reported at the time. Morality and business advantages, such as outperforming peers, are reasons to keep DEI around, Remillard said. The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce launched its CODE (Commitment to Opportunity, Diversity and Equity) program — in 2021. CODE has since been awarded by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and expanded into Ontario. 'I think that companies continue to see the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion,' said Mike Shekhtman, a senior regional director at Robert Half, a human resource firm. If anything, Canadian companies are 'redefining and refining.' They may not have the funds to support DEI initiatives like they did three years ago, given the current economy. It could lead to less investment and 'not-as-robust' programs, Shekhtman said. Paul Bruch-Wiens hasn't clocked any DEI cuts with his clients. He's a private wealth manager and associate portfolio manager with Quadrant Private Wealth. The company and the University of Manitoba partnered on Friday's conference. 'It's difficult to understand exactly where this is leading over the long term,' Bruch-Wiens said, considering diversity programming changes in the United States. He's interested to see how such policy shifts will affect investments years down the line. Briscoe-Tran's paper highlighted the short term. In July, a U.S. judge permanently blocked part of the 'Stop WOKE Act,' eliminating restrictions on workplace training. Briscoe-Tran and Siegel have reached their paper's revision stage; they're hoping to see it published within the next few years. A swath of academics presented their papers at the Quadrant Behavioral Finance Conference. Industry and fellow academics provided feedback. The process helps to bring 'theory to life,' Bruch-Wiens said. Other topics included the efficacy of remote work for executives, newspaper closures and trading in local stocks. Gabrielle PichéReporter Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle. Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
DeSantis gets Washington FOMO, creates his own misery-spreading Florida DOGE
Great news: Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that Florida is getting its own DOGE squad. Let the tears begin! 'I'm excited about this effort to take some of what we've seen in Washington that they're doing with Elon Musk and apply it to Florida,' DeSantis said at a press conference earlier this week. I'm excited too. Florida DOGE — which stands for DeSantis Obviously Getting Envious — will finally address the rampant government waste in the state. In the interest of helping out, I have a few slam-dunk examples of how DeSantis can demonstrate that he means business with the Florida DOGE. For starters, he can go after the foolish waste of money Florida taxpayers have incurred in order to defend laws serving as political stunts. For example, the state of Florida just paid $725,000 in legal fees and costs to companies that successfully challenged the state's Stop WOKE Act, a law that attempts to prevent private companies from conducting workplace training that deals with diversity and race-based issues. I know. Ridiculous. The clearly flawed attempt to coerce private businesses to abandon their free-speech rights in order to parrot the political views of a particular political party has been an unconstitutional exploding cigar. Yet, it was passed so (name redacted) could say 'woke' for as long as it takes for him to get a better job outside of Florida. As a result, not only did taxpayers get stuck paying the attorneys fees of the companies that sued, but the state also retained its own Washington, D.C.-based lawyers, who billed at $725 an hour each. That's a lot of wasted money that could have been used elsewhere, such as filling the need for social workers. According to ZipRecruiter, the average social worker salary in Florida is about $57,000. So, instead of paying lawyers to defend indefensible political theater, Florida could have used that money to hire 127 social workers. Go DOGE that. And while you're at it, there has been a lot of waste, fraud and abuse involved in the political stunt of flying asylum-seeking migrants in other states around the country. Tricking 50 Venezuelans who were legally seeking asylum in Texas to board a plane chartered by Florida taxpayers in order to dump them in Martha's Vineyard has been costly. Floridians have paid at least $1.6 million to an aviation company and another $1 million or so in legal fees in trying to mop up the aftermath of what amounted to the most expensive attempt by a person to be a guest on Fox News. In per-capita terms, the stunt cost Florida taxpayers about $35,000 for each Texas Venezuelan. I think it's safe to say that spending Florida tax dollars on Texas Venezuelans is a sterling example of waste, fraud and abuse. Go DOGE that. DeSantis talked about needing to DOGE the state university system in Florida. I couldn't agree more. Career educators have been pushed aside and forced to resign in order to hand college and university president jobs in Florida to unqualified DEI (DeSantis Entwined Individual) hires. As a result, former Florida House Speaker and state Education Secretary Richard Corcoran is running New College of Florida for a compensation package that is worth an estimated $1.3 million — far more than the $305,000 salary the career university administrator who was pushed aside had been paid. At Florida International University (FIU), Jeanette Nunez has traded in her $135,000-per-year state job as lieutenant governor to take over at FIU in Miami, where she will have her own provided home and a compensation package expected to be worth about $1 million per year. Same thing goes with Adam Hasner, a former Republican lawmaker who found work as a private prison executive. Somehow, he has been deemed worthy of the presidency at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), where he too will be making close to $1 million in salary and other compensation. That's a lot of pressure on state university foundations, who have to foot most of the bill because a state law limits pay to university presidents at $200,000 per year. More: Woke alert! Political indoctrination (right-wing) now on syllabus at New College | Opinion And here's another DOGE issue. In November, about 55.9 percent of Florida voters said 'yes' to Amendment 3, a proposed Florida amendment that called for legalizing recreational marijuana. That was just short of the 60% threshold needed for passage. There was something odd about the lead-up to the vote. While most voters approved the amendment, they also footed the bill for a lot of the advertising against the measure. That's because Gov. DeSantis used $50 million in taxpayer money to fund advertisements urging voters to reject the amendment. Using millions of tax dollars to pay for political ads? That sounds more like government waste than government efficiency. 'No matter where you stand on this issue, this is still a democracy. We do not spend taxpayer dollars in advance of a political issue,' said Florida state Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, a supporter of the amendment. 'Tax dollars are meant to be spent on our police, schools, roads, and other public programs that make our state great, not political agendas.' Go DOGE that too. The good news about DeSantis taking on waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars in Florida is that he can put on dark sunglasses, tote a chainsaw and get to DOGE-ing without needing to look beyond his own office. Frank Cerabino is a news columnist with The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network-Florida. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: DeSantis announces Musk-inspired FL DOGE effort. We need it | Opinion
