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Sound Transit will shell out nearly half a million dollars annually to hire a Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) who will offer a “total dedication” to a far-left anti-racist ideology. The lists a salary range of $140K to $450K, with a midpoint of $295K.

This job listing comes at a time when major corporations nationwide are abandoning such positions, recognizing them as ineffective at best and divisive at worst. Yet, Sound Transit, already notorious for its financial mismanagement and perpetually delayed projects, seems eager to jump on the DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) bandwagon 鈥� much to the detriment of taxpayers and commuters alike.

Sound Transit has a well-documented history of budget overruns and project delays. For instance, the cost estimates for the Operations and Maintenance Facility South (OMF South) have by approximately $592 million to $1.066 billion over initial projections. The agency’s full system expansion announced in 2017, meanwhile, tens of billions of dollars. And let’s not dive into the light rail expansion to Bellevue.

Despite these glaring issues, Sound Transit is prioritizing a high-paying Chief Diversity position? Perhaps that’s why the job posting caught the attention of a listener, despite it being posted in December 2024.

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What is the Sound Transit Chief Diversity Officer supposed to do?

The job description contains a lot of woke jargon, emphasizing the need to “embed equity and inclusion” and “drive transformative change.” Translation: they’re looking for someone to implement policies that focus more on social engineering than on efficient transit solutions.

The Sound Transit Chief Diversity Officer is tasked with being a “dynamic change agent to foster a positive, inclusive work environment.” They must have expertise in “DEI and Civil Rights.” The applicant should have, “Strong sensitivity and understanding of various forms of systemic inequities and the multifaceted ways discrimination can occur. Total dedication to the objectives of Anti-racism, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Civil Rights, implementing these principles throughout the organization.”

Meanwhile, the corporate world is waking up from the DEI delusion.

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Big companies are ditching the DEI grift

Unlike Sound Transit, most businesses can’t get away with wasting funds on politically-inspired social justice agendas that don’t offer any improvements in the workforce.

Companies like Meta, McDonald’s and Walmart have recently scaled back or eliminated their DEI programs. Meta, for example, ended its diversity and inclusion team, stating that it would focus instead on “building teams with the most talented people” rather than making hiring decisions based on protected characteristics. Even Amazon has halted some of its DEI initiatives. In a memo to employees, a senior human resources executive stated the company is “winding down outdated programs and materials” and focusing on “programs with proven outcomes.”

These companies have recognized that DEI programs often lead to division rather than unity, and create an environment where identity politics is prioritized over merit. Sound Transit, however, appears oblivious to this trend.

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Sound Transit should focus on dealing with their service problems, ditch Diversity Chief

Instead of addressing its chronic inefficiencies and financial woes, Sound Transit is diverting resources to a Chief Diversity position that won’t improve transit services. You know what $450K could be spent more effectively on? Hiring more staff to handle the on-board homeless fentanyl addicts or more deep cleanings of light rail trains so they don’t smell like a homeless encampment.

This is not just a waste of money; it’s an insult to taxpayers who expect their dollars to be used for much-needed improvements in public transportation.

The role of a Chief Diversity Officer often involves implementing training programs that label certain groups as oppressors and others as victims, regardless of individual actions or intentions. Does anyone reasonably think staff indoctrinated with these viewpoints will tackle the rampant homelessness taking over light rail?

Moreover, the focus on diversity metrics can lead to hiring and promotion practices that prioritize characteristics like race and gender identity over qualifications and performance. Kudos to Sound Transit: they’ll have more non-binary Latinx project managers. But the programs will become even more over budget because they rejected more highly qualified people to socially engineer their workforce.

Another misguided attempt to appear woke

Sound Transit’s decision to hire a Chief Diversity Officer is a misguided attempt to seem socially progressive at the expense of fiscal responsibility and organizational effectiveness. They may very well think they’ll earn less rider ire if they seem as woke as a Seattle voter.

But if Sound Transit truly wants to serve the public, it should concentrate on its core mission: providing reliable and efficient transit services. This means getting projects done on time and within budget, not indulging in ideological crusades that have little to do with transportation. But perhaps the problem is that they don’t want to achieve their core mission.

At a time when even the federal government is reevaluating and, in some cases, dismantling DEI programs, Sound Transit should take note and focus on what really matters. Anything less is the dereliction of duty that we’ve come to expect from Sound Transit.

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