Today, the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, reversing a 9th Circuit Court decision and making it much more difficult to hold large corporations accountable for their treatment of employees.
People For the American Way President Michael Keegan issued the following statement:
“This morning, Justice Scalia and his fellow conservatives handed a gift to Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest private employer, and slammed the courthouse door on as many as 1.5 million women across the nation who have been pursuing a class action employment discrimination suit. As in the Lilly Ledbetter case, a narrow 5-4 majority has gone out of its way to help corporate giants avoid accountability.
“By reversing a lower court ruling that the women could sue as a class, the conservative majority used the sheer magnitude of the alleged discrimination as an excuse to shut down the women’s ability to enforce their rights. The Court incorrectly focused on the inevitable differences any group of employees are bound to have. It ignored the glaring elephant in the room: that they are all victims of a corporate climate that is infused with bias against women.
“Today’s decision is a gift to Wal-Mart and to other corporate giants who see discrimination as just another route to maximizing profits.”
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