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Proposal coincided with Trump attack on DEI

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Apple ( AAPL ) says its oversight avoids legal risks

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Cook says company's success comes from 'culture of

collaboration'

(Adds vote totals and details)

By Stephen Nellis

Feb 25 (Reuters) - Apple ( AAPL ) shareholders voted to

keep the tech giant's diversity, equity and inclusion policies

on Tuesday, a win for management which had opposed efforts by a

conservative group to scrap the program.

The vote at the iPhone maker's annual meeting was seen as a

test of shareholder views about the value of DEI programs, which

many companies added or beefed up starting in 2020 amid the

Black Lives Matter movement.

A growing conservative backlash has pushed major U.S.

companies, including Meta and Alphabet, to

drop DEI initiatives ahead of and following Donald Trump's

return to the U.S. presidency.

Trump has criticized corporate DEI programs as

discriminatory and suggested the U.S. Department of Justice

could investigate whether such efforts violate the law.

The National Center for Public Policy Research, which

describes itself as a free-market think-tank, had submitted the

proposal titled "Request to Cease DEI Efforts" to the

shareholder meeting. The proposal was defeated, with 210.45

million votes for it and 8.84 billion votes against it.

Proponents of the proposal argued that recent legal changes

meant Apple ( AAPL ) would see an increase in discrimination cases if it

continued DEI policies. Apple ( AAPL ) said it had an active oversight

effort to avoid legal risks and that the proposal

inappropriately restricted management.

While Apple ( AAPL ) discloses diversity data about its employee

base, the company did not set targets or quotas. Many of its DEI

efforts are in the form of programs such as a racial justice

initiative under which it has provided support to historically

Black colleges and universities in the U.S.

Apple ( AAPL ) also carries out DEI efforts outside of the U.S., such

support for teaching coding skills to indigenous populations in

Mexico and working with an Aboriginal community-led nonprofit

pursuing criminal justice reform in Australia.

Apple ( AAPL ) shareholders have in the past rejected proposals that

would have required the company to disclose more about racial

and gender pay gaps.

Apple ( AAPL ) CEO Tim Cook said at Tuesday's meeting the company's

"strength has always come from hiring the very best people and

then providing a culture of collaboration, one where people with

diverse backgrounds and perspectives come together to innovate."

But Cook added that "as the legal landscape around these

issues evolves, we may need to make some changes to comply, but

our North Star of dignity and respect for everyone and our work

to that end will never waver."

The same group had asked Costco Wholesale to report on the

risks of maintaining its DEI initiatives. The membership-only

retailer's shareholders voted strongly against the proposal at a

meeting in January.

On Monday, Apple ( AAPL ) highlighted its spending in the United

States, saying it planned $500 billion in investments in the

next four years, drawing praise from Trump days after media

reported that Cook had met with the president.

Apple ( AAPL ) shareholders also voted against a proposal asking the

company to prepare a report assessing the risks of its work with

AI, though the proposal got the most votes of any shareholder

effort. It received 1.04 billion "for" votes and 7.96 billion

"against" votes.

All Apple ( AAPL ) management proposals, including a "say on pay"

provision, were approved.

Cook said on Tuesday that Apple ( AAPL ) would be the biggest

customer of a Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co ( TSM )

factory in Arizona that Trump helped bring to the United States

during his first term.