Dukes v. Wal-Mart

In what some may see as a modern version of “David and Goliath,” the women of Wal-Mart have fought for over a decade to challenge the discriminatory pay and promotion practices of the mega-retailer, which is located in all 50 states and Puerto Rico and is the largest private employer in the U.S. Last year, adding insult to alleged injury, the Supreme Court denied class certification in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011) – finding that the plaintiffs failed to satisfy the “commonality” requirement for class actions when they failed to provide proof that “[Wal-Mart] operate[d] under a general policy of discrimination.” The decision dealt a strong blow to those who would seek to become modern-day “Davids” – leading NWLC’s Co-President, Marcia Greenberger, to issue the following statement:

"Today’s ruling undermines the very purposes of the class action mechanism and is tantamount to closing the courthouse door on millions of women who cannot vindicate their rights one person at a time. The women of Wal-Mart — and women everywhere — will now face a far steeper road to challenge and correct pay and other forms of discrimination in the workplace."

The plaintiffs subsequently limited the size of their class by region – new class actions were filed in California and Texas, and complaints were filed with the EEOC in 48 states – and cut out women who held certain positions in response to the Supreme Court decision. Read more »

One year ago, in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, the Supreme Court, in a deeply divided 5-4 decision, put severe limits on workers' ability to come together to fight workplace discrimination. Yesterday, Betty Dukes, the named plaintiff in that lawsuit, came to Washington to ask Congress to remove the obstacles the Supreme Court placed in the way of ordinary Americans seeking their day in court.

Betty Dukes at the press conference introducing the EEORA

The Equal Employment Opportunity Restoration Act, introduced by Senator Al Franken and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, with 22 co-sponsors in the Senate and 38 in the House, would do just that, by creating a new avenue for workers to bring group actions to challenge company-wide discrimination. Read more »

Yesterday afternoon Representatives and Senators came together with Betty Dukes and anti-discrimination advocates to call on Congress to pass the Equal Employment Opportunity Restoration Act (EEORA).

Senate sponsors Franken and Blumenthal joined House sponsor Representative DeLauro to introduce the bill, seeking to remedy the damage done by the Dukes v. Wal-Mart decision, handed down by the Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision a year ago yesterday.

Senator Franken spoke about how the decision is a barrier to employees trying to come together as a group to enforce antidiscrimination laws against employers. These cases, Senator Franken said, are important because employees who band together are much more powerful than individuals. Senator Franken explained that EEORA creates "group actions," which restore the ability for workers to band together to challenge widescale discrimination.

This legislation is necessary, Senator Blumenthal (pictured above, Senator Franken in background) added, because the Dukes v. Wal-Mart decision created barriers that "set back the cause of justice in this country." Read more »

Tell Your Members of Congress to Stand with the Women of Wal-Mart           Betty Dukes with Senator Franken, lead Senate sponsor of the bill           Co-sponsor the Equal Employment Opportunity Restoration Act of 2012.

One year ago today, we told you devastating news: the Supreme Court had ruled against Betty Dukes and the courageous women of Wal-Mart.

In a 5-4 decision, the Court ruled that the Wal-Mart women could not band together as a single class to challenge discrimination in pay and promotions.

But that's not the end of the story.

For the last year, the National Women's Law Center and advocates across the country have pushed Congress for a solution. Today, Congress offered one!

Tell your Members of Congress to stand by the women of Wal-Mart by co-sponsoring the Equal Employment Opportunity Restoration Act of 2012.

Getting co-sponsors on this bill will help it to gain momentum — and we need you to help us move forward!

So what would this bill do?

The Equal Employment Opportunity Restoration Act of 2012 would remove the obstacles the Supreme Court placed in the way of ordinary Americans seeking their day in court. Read more »

The Supreme Court earlier this year prevented female Wal-Mart employees from forming a national class to enforce their rights against the retail giant. Despite evidence that female employees throughout the nation earned less than similarly situated male employees and were less likely to be promoted, and that Wal-Mart’s corporate policies and practices allowed for managers to use blatant sex stereotyping to make decisions about pay and promotions, the ruling prevented the women from having their case heard on the merits. Now, these women have changed their strategy to get their day in court and vindicate their rights to equal opportunity in the workplace. Read more »