Wal-Mart Loses Clock Case

A federal jury on Dec. 19 ruled that Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer with $218 billion in annual revenue, had forced more than 400 employees to work unpaid overtime from 1994 to 1999.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Portland, Ore., accused the Bentonville retailer of violating federal and state wage laws by making employees continue to work without pay after their shift ended or by calling on managers to edit time cards to eliminate overtime.

“This was a finding by a jury that Wal-Mart permitted its employees in 18 of its Oregon stores to work for free,” James Piotrowski, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, told the Reuters news agency.

“We’re disappointed because we have a very strong policy of paying our people for what they work,” Bill Wertz, a Wal-Mart spokesman, told the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal.

Wertz said there is time to consider an appeal. A separate phase of the trial will determine monetary damages, but a lawyer for the plaintiffs said damages could be double the unpaid back-pay.

The lawsuit, which was filed by two former Wal-Mart managers who worked in Oregon and joined by other employees, was the first of 39 similar class-action suits against the firm to go to trial in 30 states.

Law firms in several states have purchased TV and newspaper advertising asking disgruntled Wal-Mart employees to file or join lawsuits against the company.

Carolyn Thiebes, a former Wal-Mart personnel manager and one of the primary plaintiffs in the Oregon suit, said that she was asked to edit time cards and delete hours about eight months after she joined the company in 1992. She said she continued to do so until she left Wal-Mart in 1998. Also, she said, Wal-Mart hourly employees were encouraged to believe that they would be better off financially if they completed work after their shifts ended because many had some stock in the company.

Wertz said managers are under pressure to cut costs and keep their stores within budget, but they shouldn’t do so by breaking the law. If a store manager asks an employee to work overtime without pay, the employee should tell the regional or district manager, he said.

According to the Associated Press, Wal-Mart conceded during opening arguments that some off-the-clock work occurred but said company policy prohibited it.