How Retailers Are Tackling Groups in Court

Eight years ago, the Supreme Court ruled in Wal-Mart Stores Inc. v. Dukes that a large group of more than 1.5 million women could not pursue their workplace gender discrimination claims against the retailer as a class. Since then, the women and Walmart have picked up the pieces in several smaller ongoing suits around the country, and the retailer is still fighting to break down groups into individual cases.   The Walmart cases reflect a broader conflict playing out in court, where companies have steadily fought group actions by trying to whittle them down. Workers often pursue claims of discrimination and wage and overtime issues by banding together, which they argue helps them find attorneys to represent them, inquire into the broader impact of workplace policies and avoid being singled out for retaliation. But companies have long viewed the size and cost such group efforts as an existential threat. Workplace class-action settlements alone can be forbiddingly large, they argue, let alone the legal fees. The law firm Seyfarth Shaw LLP, which represents companies in employment disputes, estimates that the top workplace class-action settlements in 2018 amounted to some $1.32 billion, and about double that in 2017, according to the firm’s annual workplace

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

Read More...

from WWDWWD https://ift.tt/2JE9yOa