What the lawsuit says
Four New York City public pension funds sued AT&T on Tuesday in Manhattan federal court, accusing the telecom company of improperly refusing to let shareholders vote on a proposal that would require AT&T to disclose the racial, ethnic, and gender breakdown of its roughly 133,000-person workforce.
The funds argue that excluding the proposal from AT&T’s 2026 annual shareholder meeting violates SEC rules and causes “irreparable” harm. They are asking the court to stop AT&T from soliciting shareholder proxies that omit the proposal.
AT&T’s rationale and the SEC policy change
According to the complaint, AT&T relied on a November policy change at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that allows companies to exclude shareholder proposals if they claim a “reasonable basis” for doing so. The plaintiffs say that policy does not provide a valid excuse to block a shareholder vote in this case.
AT&T did not immediately respond to requests for comment, according to the report.
Disclosure history and the EEOC filing claim
The complaint states that AT&T already submits workforce diversity data annually to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The funds also say AT&T publicly disclosed the breakdown from 2021 through 2023, then stopped providing the information in 2024 without an explanation.
Who is suing and broader context
The plaintiffs include the New York City Employees’ Retirement System and pension funds representing police officers, teachers, and other education employees. A spokesperson for New York City Comptroller Mark Levine did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The filing also notes that many companies have deemphasized diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives since President Donald Trump announced a crackdown on such efforts at the start of his second term. Separately, SEC Chair Paul Atkins has said many shareholder proposals are invalid under Delaware law, where AT&T and many Fortune 500 companies are incorporated.
