Green Light for Class Action Lawsuit Against Wal-Mart

A federal judge in Texas approved class-action status for a sex-discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart. The case, which now represents up to 1.6 million former and current female Wal-Mart employees, maintains that female workers were paid less than men and passed over for promotions. Wal-Mart officials have previously tried to limit the suit to individual stores, saying that they were independently managed and should therefore be tried separately. The judge denied this motion, opening up the suit to all 3500 U.S. stores and their employees. No trial date has been set. Wal-Mart, with the help of third-party consultants, has created a new job classification and pay structure to ensure internal equity while remaining competitive in the marketplace.