Judge Denies Wal-Marts Bid to Dismiss Sex-Bias Lawsuit
by October 1, 2012 12:00 am 72 views
A federal judge has rejected Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s motion to dismiss a sex discrimination case filed in California by female former employees who claim they were denied raises and promotions.
U.S. District judge Charles Breyer made the ruling Sept. 21, Reuters news agency reported.
Breyer said he would rule later on the plaintiffs’ request to be certified as a statewide class.
The case in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California is Betty Dukes, Patricia Surgeson, Edith Arana, Deborah Gunter and Christine Kwapnoski, on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated v. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., 01-2252.
The lawsuit was originally filed in San Francisco in 2001, and was later certified as a class action that allowed up to 1.5 million current and former workers to participate.
Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned that class-action status. The reformulated case confines its complaints against the world’s largest retailer to California.
Brad Seligman, an attorney for the plaintiffs, told Reuters a similar suit has been filed in Texas, and that others are planned.