Jan 23 (Reuters) - Costco Wholesale ( COST )

shareholders voted against a proposal requesting a report on the

risks of maintaining its diversity and inclusion initiatives,

the U.S. company said on Thursday, against the backdrop of

intense scrutiny of such policies.

The vote was seen as an early test of investor views about

the value of corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)

programs, which many companies added or beefed up starting in

2020 amid the Black Lives Matter movement.

More than 98% of the shareholders voted against it at the

annual meeting, Costco said.

Last year, shareholder resolutions looking to counter DEI

programs and other corporate social considerations garnered less

than 2% support on average.

U.S. President Donald Trump has issued an executive order

that directed government agency chiefs to dismantle DEI policies

at federal agencies, federal contractors and in the private

sector.

He has also suggested that some companies will face

investigations and legal action if their programs are deemed to

be discriminatory.

The proposal from the National Center for Public Policy

Research, which describes itself as a free-market think tank,

had asked Costco to assess the potential business risks related

to its DEI policies.

The group contended that such efforts could pose legal,

reputational, and financial risks, potentially impacting

shareholder returns.

Costco's board, which urged votes against the proposal, said

the report would not provide "meaningful additional information"

to shareholders.

Companies such as Meta Platforms ( META ), Amazon.com ( AMZN )

, JPMorgan Chase ( JPM ) and Boeing ( BA ) have modified

their initiatives, scrapped their DEI goals or ended

participation in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation's

corporate equity index.

The membership-only retailer has more than 300,000 employees

globally and about 219,000 in the United States, according to

its 2024 annual report.

(Reporting by Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru and Ross Kerber in

Boston; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)