A class-action lawsuit against Wal-Mart was finally certified by the New Jersey Supreme Court. The lawsuit is filed by Wal-Mart employees who claim that the nation’s largest retailer denied them meal and rest breaks, and forced them to work off-the-clock.
Judith L. Spanier, plaintiff attorney, said the class would contain about 8,000 current and former employees of Wal-Mart.
It can be remembered that Wal-Mart workers in Pennsylvania won a $78.5 million judgment last year for a similar case. The California case also won local workers a $172 million verdict for similar reasons. Wal-Mart though is still on the process of appealing both cases.
Moreover, Wal-Mart has settled a Colorado suit over unpaid wages for $550 million. This gave Spanier the balls to appeal for the case in New Jersey, and fortunately, the Court gave in to the request.
The New Jersey Supreme Court reasoned that the class should be certified because common questions of law outweigh individual issues, and that the class-action lawsuit is the better method to handle the dispute.
However, Wal-Mart is obviously not happy with what’s going on. Who would? Spokesman John Simley said that the company was studying its options.
"It's our policy to pay every associate for every hour that they have worked. Any manager who disregards that is subject to discipline, up to and including termination," Simley said.
Wal-Mart shares rose 48 cents to $47.60 in trading Thursday. It has traded from $42.31 to $52.15 over the past year.