Women Walmart Workers Rally Support On Steps Of Justice

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

Chanting “Walmart women deserve fair pay; hear their case without delay,” hundreds of workers, women’s rights activists and labor allies assembled on the steps of the US Supreme Court on Capitol Hill yesterday morning as Justices inside heard arguments on whether allegations of systemic discrimination by the mega-retailer over pay and promotions permit a class-action lawsuit on behalf of more than 1 million female employees at Walmart. “The stakes in this case could not be higher.” Karen Schnider told Union City. “If the Supreme Court gives the green light to the women of Walmart to proceed as a class, these women who have been waiting ten long years since they first filed their lawsuit will finally get their day in court and they’ll have a chance to prove their case that they suffer discrimination on the basis of pay and lack of promotions in Walmart.” Schnider is with the National Women’s Law Center, which helped organize the demonstration. A Walmart employee from northern New Jersey – who spoke on condition of anonymity – told Union City that she has witnessed male managers “telling other female workers that women belong at home barefoot and pregnant.” She added, “They would say things like, ‘If you wear a lower-cut blouse you might get a promotion,’ and ‘Men deserve promotions because they’re heads of households and women aren’t.’ If the Supreme Court allows us to continue our fight for justice, it will send a very strong message to all companies in this country that no employer is too big to be held accountable.” – report/photo by Adam Wright