by Jeroslyn JoVonn
August 5, 2025
Texas Roadhouse is dealing with a civil rights lawsuit for upholding its DEI practices.
A conservative authorized group is focusing on Texas Roadhouse in a civil rights lawsuit, accusing the restaurant chain of hiring based mostly on variety, fairness, and inclusion (DEI) practices.
America First Authorized (AFL) filed a grievance with the Equal Employment Alternative Fee, accusing Texas Roadhouse of violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the New York Publish studies. AFL alleges that the corporate considers race and gender when choosing members for its Board of Administrators, displays workers’ race, gender, and ethnicity, and exposes the enterprise to “reputational threat” due to its variety, fairness, and inclusion (DEI) insurance policies.
“The proof demonstrates that the Firm’s hiring, promotion, and recruitment practices violate state and federal regulation,” the grievance states. “The proof additionally demonstrates that the Firm has prioritized illegal variety, fairness, and inclusion packages and insurance policies over shareholder worth.”
AFL accuses Texas Roadhouse of appearing with an “inappropriate disregard of your fiduciary duties to Texas Roadhouse and its shareholders.” Nevertheless, in response to the lawsuit, Texas Roadhouse shared a chart in its 2024 10-Ok annual report detailing the chances of workers and managers who’re ladies or individuals of colour.
The report states that the corporate considers DEI components like gender and race when choosing nominees for its Board of Administrators, alongside different standards similar to board expertise and monetary experience. It additionally highlights skilled growth initiatives centered on identification, together with a Ladies’s Management Summit and an African American Management Summit.
Texas Roadhouse emphasised its dedication to “attracting, retaining, participating, recognizing, and creating a workforce that displays the range of our visitors.” However AFL argues that the corporate is appearing with an “inappropriate disregard of your fiduciary duties to Texas Roadhouse and its shareholders.”
“Texas Roadhouse’s insurance policies are a relic of an period the place DEI contaminated American tradition with the false perception that good intentions make discrimination okay,” AFL Counsel Will Scolinos mentioned in an announcement.
Texas Roadhouse joins Cracker Barrel as targets of AFL’s civil rights lawsuits. AFL’s authorized challenges towards corporations supporting DEI practices align with President Donald Trump’s anti-DEI govt orders, which prohibit federal businesses from contracting with companies that implement DEI insurance policies. Corporations like Goal, Amazon, Disney, and Fb have confronted criticism for scaling again their DEI efforts. In distinction, others, like Costco and Apple, proceed to withstand shareholder strain to desert their initiatives.
RELATED CONTENT: Black Enterprise Month Unfolds Amid Trump Coverage Threats, Entrepreneurial Spirit Unbothered
