Last June we told you about the massive sex discrimination suit being
brought against Wal-Mart (see 6/21/01 newsflash) by its female employees.
A similar suit at Home Depot several years ago cost the home improvement
retailer more than $100 million. This week, as a follow up to the Wal-Mart
lawsuit story, a federal judge ruled that if a discrimination suit against
Wal-Mart goes to trial, the case will take place in San Francisco. One
media report called the charge against Wal-Mart “rampant discrimination
against female employees”. The federal lawsuit may encompass as many as
half a million current and former women employees at Wal-Mart. The company
tried to get the case moved to Arkansas, but U.S. District Judge Martin
Jenkins wants the case to take place in the city by the Bay. The Judge has
not yet decided IF there will be a trial, but it clearly won’t be held in
Wal-Mart’s home state, presumably because some judges in Arkansas seem to
look very favorably at the home state company, and some of those on the
bench own Wal-Mart stock. The decision to hold the case in California was
viewed as a “small victory” for the plaintiffs. The case is Dukes v.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., C-01-2252, named after one of the Plaintiffs, Betty
Dukes.
This case could end up costing Wal-Mart an enormous financial settlement.
Often the companies charged settle the case and admit to no wrong-doing. In
Home Depot’s case, the settlement cost the company more than some companies
make in ten years. For details in the Wal-Mart case, go to the 6/21/01
newsflash.
